Editing Inkstone (section)

==History==

=== Early history ===
The inkstone is Chinese in origin and is used in [[Chinese calligraphy|calligraphy]] and [[Chinese painting|painting]]. Extant inkstones date from early antiquity in China.

The device evolved from a rubbing tool used for rubbing [[dye]]s dating around 6000 to 7000 years ago.<ref name="Chen">{{cite book|author=Tingyou Chen|title=Chinese Calligraphy|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1VaoSE8FQfMC&pg=PA43|date=3 March 2011|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-521-18645-2|page=43}}</ref> The earliest excavated inkstone is dated from the 3rd century BC, and was discovered in a tomb located in modern [[Yunmeng County|Yunmeng]], Hubei. Usage of the inkstone was popularized during the Han dynasty.<ref name="Metropolitan">{{cite book|title=China: Dawn of a Golden Age, 200–750 AD|url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_JbdS-R3y72MC|year=2004|publisher=Metropolitan Museum of Art|isbn=978-1-58839-126-1|page=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_JbdS-R3y72MC/page/n134 108]}}</ref>

=== Tang, Song, and Yuan dynasties ===
[[File:Tang Inkstone (9948272575).jpg|thumb|Inkstone, [[Tang dynasty]]]]
Stimulated by the social economy and culture, the demand for inkstones increased during the [[Tang dynasty]] (618–905) and reached its height in the [[Song dynasty]] (960–1279). Song dynasty inkstones can be of great size and often display a delicacy of carving. Song dynasty inkstones can also exhibit a roughness in their finishing. Dragon designs of the period often reveal an almost humorous rendition; the dragons often seem to smile. From the subsequent Yuan dynasty, in contrast, dragons display a ferocious appearance. 
[[File:Inkstone with phoenix design (front).jpg|left|thumb|Inkstone with phoenix design, attributed to Qing dynasty artisan [[Gu Erniang]]]]

=== Qing dynasty ===
The transition to civil rule under [[Kangxi Emperor]] in 1681 saw an increase in imperial inkstone production. Inkstones were often given as gifts, likely in part to help connect existing Chinese literati culture to the new Manchu imperial culture.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last=Ko |first=Dorothy |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1298399895 |title=The social life of inkstones : artisans and scholars in early Qing China |date=2017 |isbn=978-0-295-99919-7 |location=Seattle |pages=62–65 |oclc=1298399895}}</ref>

The [[Qianlong Emperor]] had his own imperial collection of inkstones catalogued into a twenty-four chapter compendium entitled ''Xiqing yanpu'' (Hsi-ch'ing yen-p'u). Many of these inkstones are housed in the [[National Palace Museum]] collection in Taipei.

Qing dynasty emperors often had their inkstones made of Songhua stones, but this choice was not popular outside of the imperial workshop. Inkstone design outside the palace developed largely in parallel with imperial inkstone design, although they occasionally intersected.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /> [[Gu Erniang]] was the most famous inkstone-maker among Chinese scholars in the early Qing dynasty. Records indicate her inkstones were elegant and relatively simple, as was the preferred style at the time. However, by the late Qing dynasty, the inkstone market had turned to favoring highly intricate and novel designs.<ref name=":2">{{Cite book |last=Ko |first=Dorothy |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1298399895 |title=The social life of inkstones : artisans and scholars in early Qing China |date=2017 |isbn=978-0-295-99919-7 |location=Seattle |pages=20–22 |oclc=1298399895}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Ko |first=Dorothy |url=https://www.worldcat.org/oclc/1298399895 |title=The social life of inkstones : artisans and scholars in early Qing China |date=2017 |isbn=978-0-295-99919-7 |location=Seattle |pages=172 |oclc=1298399895}}</ref>