Wang Xizhi
(303 - 361) Primary

Letters and Notes of Wang Youjun

Eastern Jin Eastern Jin
20th century reproduction of 8th century Tang tracing copy of 4th century original

10 x 62 1/2 in. (25.4 x 158.75 cm)

This object has the following keywords:

• calligraphy - Art of writing, particularly the creation of beautiful, elegant letters or flourishes by hand with a pen, either in unjoined characters or in cursive writing.
• calligraphy - Works composed primarily of beautiful, elegant letters or flourishes that are typically created by hand with a pen, either in unjoined characters or in cursive writing. May also refer to similar works created by computer or another means.
• Chinese - The cultures, styles, and periods characteristic of China. To specifically refer to the cultures of ancient Chine, use "Ancient Chinese."
• Eastern Jin - Refers to culture, style, and period of the Chinese dynasty dating 317 to 420 CE, the second of the so-called Six Dynasties that succeeded each other in southern China. When Luoyang and Chang-an were destroyed in 317, the Chinese fled south to establish a new southern state. Emperors of the Sima family were not able to reconquer the north which remained under the rule of various groups known collectively as the Sixteen Kingdoms; an exception was the area of modern Sichuan province which was annexed in 347, opening up a route to central Asia. Although not a politically strong period in Chinese history, it was a brilliant time for literature and the arts. The capital of Jiankang flourished as a cultural center visited by Buddhist missionaries and merchants from Southeast Asia and India. One of the earliest known Buddhist gilt-bronze images was cast in 338 in imitation of a Gandharan model. Wang Xizhi, the most influential calligrapher in Chinese history, was active during the this period. Eastern Jin ceramic forms are more innovative than those of the Western Jin. Some tombs of the period have been excavated at Mt. Fugui in Nanjing which was, according to literary sources, the imperial burial ground of Eastern Jin imperial families.
• facsimiles - Exact copies of an original object, usually in the same dimensions as the original, especially of books, documents, prints, and drawings. Today often reproduced photographically; in the past, reproduced by engraving or other printmaking process.
• inscriptions - Words, texts, lettering, or symbols marked on a work, including texts, legends, documentation notes, or commemoration. For standardized symbols or notations on objects that convey official information, use "marks (symbols)."
• scroll paintings - Refers to paintings having a long, narrow scroll format. Term is often used in the context of Chinese and Japanese paintings on either hanging scrolls (kakemono, if Japanese) or on handscrolls (emakimono, if Japanese). For written documents on long, rolled strips, see "scrolls (information artifacts)."
• scrolls - Long strips of flexible material used for written documents and rolled for ease of handling and storage. For paintings on either hanging scrolls or handscrolls, use "scroll paintings."

This object is a member of the following portfolios: