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Zhong Yao (151–230 CE) was a statesman and calligrapher of the late Eastern Han and early Three Kingdoms period, traditionally regarded as the “Father of Regular Script” (kaishu) in Chinese calligraphy. His work Jian Jizhi Biao (Memorial Recommending Ji Zhi) is one of his most famous surviving pieces, originally written as a court memorial…
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Zhao Mengfu (1254–1322) was a renowned calligrapher, painter, and scholar-official of the Yuan Dynasty. As a descendant of the Song imperial family, he played a pivotal role in reviving classical styles of Chinese art and calligraphy. His work Dao De Jing (The Tao Te Ching), handwritten in small regular script (xiaokaishu), is one of…
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Liu Gongquan (778–865 CE) was a leading calligrapher of the Tang Dynasty, renowned for his rigorous, upright, and sharply structured style of regular script (kaishu). His most famous work, the Xuanmi Ta Bei (Stele of the Mysterious and Secret Pagoda), was engraved in 841 CE to honor the life and teachings of a prominent…
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Yan Zhenqing (709–785 CE) was one of China’s greatest calligraphers and a loyal official of the Tang Dynasty. He is especially famous for developing a bold, dignified, and powerful style of regular script (kaishu) that broke from earlier elegant but delicate traditions. His early masterpiece, the Dobao Ta Bei (Stele of the Many Treasures…
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Ouyang Xun (557–641 CE) was one of the most influential calligraphers of the early Tang Dynasty, renowned for his precise, disciplined, and structurally rigorous style of regular script (kaishu). His masterpiece, the Jiucheng Palace Liqueur Spring Inscription (Jiucheng Gong Li Quan Ming), was engraved in 632 CE to commemorate the discovery of a sweet…
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Zhi Yong or Zhiyong (active late 6th–early 7th century CE) was a Buddhist monk and a celebrated calligrapher of the Sui Dynasty, traditionally regarded as a descendant of Wang Xizhi, China’s most revered calligrapher. He is best known for his work Thousand Character Classic in Regular and Cursive Scripts (Zhencao Qianzi Wen), a masterpiece…
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The Zhang Heinv Tomb Inscription (also known as the Epitaph of Zhang Heinv, full title is “Epitaph of Zhang Xuan, Former Governor of Nanyang Commandery of the Wei Dynasty”) is a famous Northern Wei dynasty (386–534 CE) stone inscription, dating to 531 CE.
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Wang Xizhi (303–361 CE) was a renowned Chinese calligrapher of the Eastern Jin Dynasty and is widely regarded as the “Sage of Calligraphy” in China. His most celebrated work is the Lanting Xu (Preface to the Poems Composed at the Orchid Pavilion), written in 353 CE.
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The Cao Quan Stele, formally titled “The Stele of Cao Quan, Magistrate of Heyang in the Han Dynasty,” was erected in 185 CE during the Eastern Han Dynasty by Wang Chang and others to commemorate the achievements and virtues of Cao Quan, who served as the magistrate of Heyang. The inscription on the stele…