Lantingji Xu

A celebrated calligraphic preface written by Wang Xizhi in 353 CE for poems composed at the Orchid Pavilion gathering. Its original is lost, but later copies shaped its reputation as a model of running script.

Running script: A Chinese calligraphic script that links and simplifies characters while retaining their legibility. Wang Xizhi’s fluid, varied strokes became a defining model of this script.
Orchid Pavilion gathering: A 353 CE gathering at the Orchid Pavilion where Wang Xizhi and fellow literati composed poems beside a stream. The preface records the setting and reflections associated with this gathering.
Emperor Taizong of Tang: The second emperor of the Tang dynasty, who reigned from 626 to 649 and avidly collected calligraphy. His esteem and collecting helped establish the work’s prestige at court.
Dingwu copy of the Lantingji Xu: A famed stone-inscription version of the Lantingji Xu associated with Dingwu in Hebei. It is one of the best-known transmission lines for the lost calligraphy.
Wang Xizhi: A Chinese calligrapher of the Eastern Jin dynasty, later honored as the Sage of Calligraphy. He wrote the preface whose brushwork made it a calligraphic touchstone.
Eastern Jin dynasty: A Chinese dynasty that ruled southern China from 317 to 420 CE. Wang Xizhi wrote the work during this dynasty’s rule.
Tracing copy: A reproduction made by tracing the forms of an existing model or inscription. Tracing helped preserve and transmit the work’s forms after the original disappeared.
Lantingji Xu rubbings: Impressions made by rubbing paper over an inked or inked-in stone inscription of the Lantingji Xu. Rubbings preserve forms from stone versions and allow comparison among copies.
Chinese brush calligraphy: The art of writing Chinese characters with a brush, ink, and controlled variation in stroke. The work’s force depends on brush pressure, movement, and ink variation.
Preface: An introductory text that precedes and frames a longer work or collection. The piece introduces poems produced at the pavilion gathering.

Linked from 4 pages

The Red CliffCompared with: It became another celebrated landscape-based literary memory, centered on a gathering rather than a battlefield.