Chapter 15 The second section of ink

Ink color, also called ink pad, is the pigment used to seal a seal.Stamping with ink and color is a new seal method that emerged after the era of sealing clay on seals came to an end in the Eastern Jin Dynasty.From ancient times to the present, the colors used for stamping are divided into three types: ink seal, green seal and red seal. Ink printing is to use ink ash to mix honey or use alum to grind ink ash to make it into thick juice, smear it on the printing surface, and then print it on public and private documents written on paper, silk, and cloth, as the basis for execution, compliance and authority.It is said that the book seal of Jixian Academy in the Tang Dynasty was an ink seal, and the ink color remained unchanged for a long time.Most of the seals on the scriptures written by the Tang Dynasty found in the Dunhuang stone chamber are made of vermilion, but occasionally there are also ink seals.In addition, the "Zhenguan" of Emperor Taizong of Tang Dynasty, the two seals of "Kaiyuan" of Xuanzong and the "Seal of Jianye Study Room" of Li Yu, the posthumous master of the Southern Tang Dynasty, although most of them used vermilion, there were also some with ink. India's statement is well-founded.In addition, ink printing has another use.From Song to Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties, there was a popular custom in the society, that is, during the mourning period, that is, within a hundred days, private seals must not be printed with scarlet, but ink seals must be used instead, which is called "Ding You Yin".

Green seal, that is, stone blue seal.Qingyin was used in the Yuan Dynasty.In addition, there are also clear texts in the Qing Dynasty Huidian Cases. During the Ming and Qing Dynasties, whenever there was a national mourning (that is, when the emperor passed away), the official seal would be changed to blue within a hundred days.Qingyin is also used during folk mourning.Fang Shishu (AD 1692-1751), a painter in the Qianlong period, stamped a small square seal with the inscription "I found it by chance" on his previous paintings during his mourning period, which was also stone blue. The earliest use of Zhuyin was recorded in historical records during the Southern and Northern Dynasties. Emperor Wudi of Liang used cinnabar to print his name on his name, calling himself "Situ".

Zhuyin is made of cinnabar, and there are watermarks, honeymarks and mimeographs.Originally, Zhuyin was made of water and cinnabar. At first glance, it looks bright red, but after a long time, the water will fade away, and the cinnabar will float on the paper and fall off easily.The honey seal is made of honey and cinnabar, which is much better than the ink made with water, but when the honey is exhausted, the vermilion is easy to fall off.Since the Yuan Dynasty, there have been inks prepared with oil and cinnabar.Mimeograph colors have already appeared in the works of Yuan Dynasty painter Zhao Mengfu.But the widespread use of mimeograph color was after the Ming Dynasty.The mimeograph color is prepared with cinnabar, castor oil and moxa.Its production must go through various processes such as oil refining, moxa treatment, sand selection, milk sand, and compounding.The seal stamped with high-quality mimeograph color is bright red and will remain unchanged for a long time.

Legend has it that during the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, there was a kind of eight-treasure ink pad, which was engraved on calligraphy and painting, with raised inscriptions and bright red color.The so-called "Eight Treasures" refers to the inkpad made of eight kinds of high-quality raw materials: vermilion powder, Chenzhou cinnabar, Cambodian ruby, red gold powder, stalactite, coral chips, carqu powder, and crystal powder.Whether the raw materials of the above-mentioned legendary "Eight Treasures" are reliable is still unknown, but from the seals of the Qianlong period stamped on handed down calligraphy and paintings, it can be seen that the ink pads at that time were indeed red and calm and unchanged for a long time.

The colors of Zhuyin include cinnabar red, vermilion fat red, carmine and so on.Domestically, Zhangzhou in Fujian, Xiling Yinshe in Hangzhou, Yidege in Beijing, and Shanghai all produce inkpads, but since the Guangxu period of the Qing Dynasty to the present, the Zhufa red inkpad made in Zhangzhou, Fujian is the most famous. Do not store ink pads in containers made of metal, as the ink pads are in contact with metal and are prone to deterioration.It is best to use a magnetic printing box to store ink pads, which is not easy to penetrate oil.After the ink pad is used, the lid of the box should be covered to prevent the ink pad from drying out due to the sun.