What is rubbing?

Rubbings are hand-made copies of carved or carved surfaces. The method is to cover a piece of paper tightly on the work and rub it with black or colored materials. Traditional rubbing materials are rice paper and a kind of block black material called rubbing wax. Sometimes, especially when wiping thin lines, it is best to use another method, that is, add oil with a graphite powder to reach a certain dry hardness, and then apply it to paper with an inker. Rubbing is widely used to copy various reliefs in various cultural times; Reproduction of stone carvings, especially those of ancient China and other Asian cultures; Reproduction of memorial brass sculptures in medieval churches; Copy the tombstone before the founding of the United States; Even in Japan, it is used to copy fish. Artists also regard rubbings as a creative process. They colored the rubbings, adding or changing the original lines. [ 1]

Chinese name

Tuotuo

spell

Tiangang

Another name

Tuoshi

Current reference

Inscription rubbings

meaning

The words on stone tablets or utensils are printed on paper.

quick

navigate by water/air

source

change

works

And engraving and printing

Make rubbings

meaning

Lithography exhibition

brief introduction

The so-called rubbing is to soak a tough thin paper in advance, then apply it on a stone tablet, tap it lightly with a brush to make the paper enter the mouth, dip it in ink with a brush after the paper is dry, pat it gently to make the ink evenly spread on the paper, and then remove the paper, so that a rubbing with white characters on a black background will be copied. This method of copying words is called rubbing. It is a process of printing stone carvings or woodcut characters with paper and ink to preserve and spread.

source

Rubbing has a long history in China. As early as 2000 BC, important events have been carved on dominoes or bronzes, and some have been carved on tiles, ceramics, wood and jade to preserve words and images. Only the material with the longest inscription can be used as a push stone. Among some large-scale plans to preserve authoritative works, the largest project was completed from 605 to 1096, and more than 4 million Buddhist scriptures were engraved on 7 137 stone tablets or tablets. Prior to this, from 175 to 183, more than 200,000 words of Confucian Seven Classics had been engraved on the front and back of 46 stone tablets, and the standard template for officials of scholars in the Eastern Han Dynasty was established and preserved. Later, the Six Dynasties also carved Confucian classics, with the Qing Dynasty at the end of 18 as its overall success. As we all know, the cliff surface where the temple is located is also used to carve huge religious declarations.

Tuotuo

The origin of rubbings is not recorded in history, so far there are different opinions and it is difficult to draw a conclusion. Most people think that rubbings began in the Xiping period of the Eastern Han Dynasty. But one thing is certain, that is, rubbings must have appeared after the invention of paper, and the origin of rubbings is very old, and it appeared earlier than block printing.

The rubbing technology of characters in Sui Dynasty was very developed, which also showed that rubbing appeared before this.

By the Tang Dynasty, rubbings were more developed. There are not only folk workshops, but also the government has set up rubbing institutions.

change

There are two main changes in the rubbing method. First, the positive and negative changes of the text; The words on the earliest stone carvings are concave words written in the front, and later stone carvings are concave words written in the back; Another change is that the rubbings above and below the stone carving turn to the rubbings on the woodcut.

works

The earliest extant rubbings are "Wenquanming", a relic of the 6th century AD preserved in Dunhuang stone chambers. But this is by no means the earliest rubbings. The rubbings appeared before the rubbings in Wenquanming. According to the records of Sui Shu Jing Ji Zhi, there are rubbings in the Royal Library of Sui Dynasty, which are in volumes, including a volume of Inscription on Qin Shihuang's East Tour, 34 volumes of Xiping Shijing Legacy, and a volume of Cao Wei's Three-body Shijing 17, and it is mentioned that the inscriptions hidden in Liang Shi have been lost in Sui Dynasty. There were rubbings of stone carvings in Liang Dynasty, which provided documentary evidence for rubbings in Southern and Northern Dynasties. Generally speaking, rubbings refer to rubbing inscriptions on stone tablets. In fact, rubbings are not specifically rubbings. Inspired by the circulating inscriptions, it is reasonable for people to carve the words that need rubbing and copying on wooden boards to make printing plates, and then rubbing them on the printing plates. In Du Fu's poems, there is a saying that "the monument of Yishan was burned by wild fire, and the jujube was distorted". This poem describes a historical fact, that is, words are carved on boards, made into woodcuts, and then spread or printed on woodcuts.

Tuotuo

And engraving and printing

Compared with block printing, this rubbing method has many similarities, that is, it requires manuscript, paper, ink and other conditions, and its purpose is to copy a large number of words and images.

As far as printing reproduction is concerned, its appearance provides the invention of printing with a method of printing on paper, which already has the basic elements in the definition of printing and a whole set of printing technology. It is more appropriate to regard it as the prototype of block printing.

But the inscription is concave and negative, and the engraving is convex and positive. Copied rubbings and block prints are white characters on a black background, while the latter is black characters on a white background. Moreover, the width of rubbings is often larger than that of block printing, and the speed is far less than that of block printing. Therefore, it can not be regarded as a printing method, but as the prototype of block printing.

The earliest extant rubbings "The Name of Hot Springs"

Make rubbings

The rubbings are made by covering the surface of the inscription with wet paper and pressing it into each concave notch with a rabbit brush. Another method is to cover it with dry paper and coat it with rice paste or batter before pressing. When the paper is about to dry, cover it with a pad dipped in ink. Then remove the paper from the stone tablet. Because the black ink did not touch the indented part, the rubbings made became white characters on a black background. If the inscription is embossed instead of intaglio, the position of black and white will be reversed. ) This technique of making rubbings was obviously simultaneous, if not earlier than the invention of printing in China. Many scholars believe that engraving printing should evolve from self-engraving technology; Used for printing, it is the reverse operation of rubbing method, that is, engraving a convex image in the opposite direction on the board, then coating ink on the convex part and covering it with paper.

meaning

People engaged in woodcut obviously didn't notice its significance at first. They think this is just following the stone carving method, replacing stone with wood. Later, in the long-term practice, they gradually realized the practical significance of replacing stone with wood, and combined with the methods of seal cutting and rubbing, that is, the characters engraved on the negative were copied into characters written in Yang script, and then the ink was brushed on the board and transferred to paper. In other words, expand the area of Yang Wen seal, brush ink and cover paper on the printing plate, and brush and print in a way similar to rubbing. In this way, a perfect printing technology-block printing was born naturally. The appearance of rubbing provided a copy method of printing on paper for the invention of printing. After careful analysis, rubbing already has the basic elements in the definition of printing, which is a whole set of technology with brush and printing. It can be said that rubbing itself is a kind of hazy printing. It is more appropriate to regard it as the prototype of block printing.

Lithography exhibition

"Ji Jin Xerox" China Chuantuo Art Exhibition appeared in Xiling Yinshe Art Museum.

On the occasion of the birthday of Xiling Publishing House 1 10, the newly-built Xiling Publishing House Art Museum was completed. China rubbing exhibition "Ji Jin Xerox", sponsored by Xiling Yinshe Art Museum and co-organized by Collection magazine planned by Mr. Liu Xinhui, took this opportunity to show the highest production level of China rubbing. While revealing this traditional culture which is more attractive and ornamental than printed matter, it also shows the different feelings of contemporary literati about the world.

Communication art can be called the quintessence of China, and it has an unparalleled special position in the inheritance of many traditional cultural skills in China. As early as eight years ago, the Shanghai Museum bought Song Tuoben's "Spring Flower Pavilion" for $4.6 million. However, holographic friction technology is much more complicated than plane friction. Since the Ming and Qing Dynasties, there have been many rubbings masters, and rubbings abound. The so-called unprecedented, after no one, such as Shuren Wang Lite and other students, after more than ten years of painstaking practical research, finally developed and completed the finishing and improvement of the three-dimensional holographic extension technology on the basis of traditional holographic extension. Show this wonderful work of China ancient culture to the world more exquisitely and perfectly. The knower sighs his ability, the viewer sighs his skill, and the appreciator sighs his spirit.

Full-shape extension of dragon tripod

The communication art exhibition lasts for more than one month,1ends on October 20th, 165438. The "China Communication Art Seminar" to be held during this exhibition will surely make this magical skill reflect the brilliance of more splendid traditional culture.