What are the formal features and fonts of the plaque?

The plaque is an inscription hanging above the main entrance and exit of the building and on the wall of the indoor hall. The most common types are rectangular horizontal hanging, rectangular vertical hanging and square hanging. In addition, there are small plaques in the shape of scroll, banana leaf and fan, which are mostly scattered in gardens, caves, study rooms and houses. The ancient monuments in China can be said to be comprehensive works of art integrating Chinese language, China calligraphy, traditional architecture and carving skills, which are both ideological and artistic. Because the inscriptions on the plaque mostly praise kindness, encourage enterprising, wish good luck and remember interesting things. Plaque is a comprehensive art form integrating literature, calligraphy, seal cutting, carving and decoration, which is deeply loved by people.

The plaque originated in Qin and Han Dynasties. It is said that there were eight styles of calligraphy in Qin Shihuang's time, namely, big seal script, small seal script, seal cutting, worm script, copying, official script, dead script and official script. The series book, also known as the list book, is a font used to write plaques.