Chinese Horse and Full Moon Inkstone

Scholarly pursuits such as painting, calligraphy, and poetry were a highly respected and revered subculture in ancient China, and demanded their own set of tools that were not only functional, but also beautiful. Scholars relied on inkstones such as this one to mix their dry inks with water for use in calligraphy painting. This stone inkstone is covered in intricate carvings of crashing waves, surrounding the image of a horse bearing a saddle. Covered in scales, the horse is likely a longma, or "dragon horse...

Scholarly pursuits such as painting, calligraphy, and poetry were a highly respected and revered subculture in ancient China, and demanded their own set of tools that were not only functional, but also beautiful. One of the "Four Treasures of the Study," inkstones such as this were used to mix dry ink with water for use in calligraphy painting. This 19th century inkstone is guarded by a mythical fu dog, or shizi, depicted with open jaws and a long mane of flowing curls. Resembling a Buddhist fly whisk...

Scholarly pursuits such as painting, calligraphy, and poetry were a highly respected and revered subculture in ancient China, and demanded their own set of tools that were not only f...

Set upon its side, we display this dahua stone like a traditional scholars' rock (gongshi). Meditating on the stone’s irregular composition, the Qing-dynasty scholar sought inspirati...

A well-chosen stone is a focal point of both a traditional Chinese garden and a scholar's studio, evoking the complexities of nature and inspiring creative thought. Polished to bring...

Along with paper, ink, and inkstone, the brush was part of the four treasures found in a scholar’s studio. Arguably the most important tool, the brush served as a direct link to the ...

A 19th century Chinese Inkstone. The upper part decorated with floral lotus motives serving as water basin. The Inkstone was one of the four principal ele...

This inkstone is from the Ming dynasty in China, and would have been used to grind hardened 'inksticks' of pigment into paint through a process of rubbing and mixing with water. The...

A black carved Chinese inkstone with an conforming oval cover circa early 20th century (late Qing to Republic period). The inkstone appears to be slate stone and was likely a She type (SheYan), one of the four famous inkstones in China that comes from She County (Anhui Province) and Wuyuan County (Jiangxi Province). It features a slight scalloping edge with elaborate surface carving that depicts the Sanxings (three beloved gods): Fu, God of Fortune (top right), Lu, God of Prosperity (top center holding a Ruyi staff) and Shou, God of Longevity (center on the lid who is holding a magical peach and a staff with a gourd with a deer at the back) . A towering evergreen pine was placed on the left with scrolling clouds and bats (the sound of bat in Chinese is Fu, the fortune). A famous Chinese couplet...

The Chinese scholar rock on offer here is a wonderful example of Yingde stone, a less common type than Lingbi or Taihu. Gray in color, it has an extraordinary upright form rising fro...

An intriguing Chinese scholar rock in vertical form presented on a custom hand-carved wood stand circa late Qing Dynasty. The greyish black stone is of Yingde type. Its upright form ...

A fantastic Chinese scholar's stone, called gongshi, of gray lingbi limestone, mounted on a hardwood stand, late Qing or early Republic, early 20th century, circa 1910, China . The ...