a: fine grain, smooth textured stone; dark purplish-gray color; carved in outline of "wind" character (feng); wide flat surface sloping down to a well enclosed by a raised border at the narrower end, border continues on the long sides and tapers down to the curved lip of the open fan-shaped wider end; two slab supports carved out of the edges on the underside; remains of black ink in interior margins; b: silver box with open pedestal base pierced on all four sides with wide oval openings of ogee-bracket form above the flat flanged foot; supports a quadrilateral container with tapered sides and rounded ends fitted to the outside of the inkstone; shallow sides with an inner flange; c: plain domed cover

Inkstone and Fitted Silver Box, 10th-11th century

Unknown artist, expand_more

Duan stone and sheet silverexpand_more

Gift of Ruth and Bruce Daytonexpand_more  2003.200.2a-c

On View in Gallery 217expand_more

It is extremely rare for an ancient inkstone to survive with its fitted box, and this example, with its silver pedestal base and cover is a testament to the high status accorded writing implements by China's scholar class.

The stone used here for the grinding palette is the fine-grained, purplish-gray tuan stone from Guangdong province in south China. It is carved in the outline of the wind character (feng) with a flat, grinding surface sloping down to a water well enclosed by a raised border. This shape is also referred to as the "winnowing basket" shape and it was a popular inkstone throughout the Tang and Song dynasties (618-1280).
The lidded pedestal base is pierced on all four sides with wide oval openings of ogee-bracket form. It, and its domed cover, is fashioned entirely from sheet silver. Silver and gold utensils were popular amongst Tang and Laio aristocracy particularly for special items. A similarly shaped inkstone and lidded pedestal base are clearly illustrated in the famous mural paintings in Chang Wen-tsao's tomb, excavated between 1974 and 1993 in Hebei province and dated to 1093.

file_downloadprintshare
arrow_back home
Details
Title
Inkstone and Fitted Silver Box
Role
Artist
Accession Number
2003.200.2a-c
Curator Approved

This record has been reviewed by our curatorial staff but may be incomplete. These records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@artsmia.org.

Does something look wrong with this image? Let us know

Zoom in on the left to the detail you'd like to save. Click 'Save detail' and wait until the image updates. Right click the image to 'save image as' or copy link, or click the image to open in a new tab.

a: fine grain, smooth textured stone; dark purplish-gray color; carved in outline of "wind" character (feng); wide flat surface sloping down to a well enclosed by a raised border at the narrower end, border continues on the long sides and tapers down to the curved lip of the open fan-shaped wider end; two slab supports carved out of the edges on the underside; remains of black ink in interior margins; b: silver box with open pedestal base pierced on all four sides with wide oval openings of ogee-bracket form above the flat flanged foot; supports a quadrilateral container with tapered sides and rounded ends fitted to the outside of the inkstone; shallow sides with an inner flange; c: plain domed cover