Ink for calligraphy and painting was made from soot mixed with a binding medium and formed into ink tablets, which were then ground with water to yield the liquid ink. Ink tablets were among the objects especially treasured and keenly appreciated by Chinese scholars. This ink tablet is decorated with a design of a peach tree, symbolic of longevity. An inscription indicates that it was made in 1576 in the workshop of Fang Yulu (active ca. 1570–1619) under the supervision of Cheng Dayue (Cheng Junfang, 1541–ca. 1616), both famous inkmakers
This image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.
Open Access
As part of the Met's Open Access policy, you can freely copy, modify and distribute this image, even for commercial purposes.
API
Public domain data for this object can also be accessed using the Met's Open Access API.
This artwork is meant to be viewed from right to left. Scroll left to view more.
Artwork Details
Use your arrow keys to navigate the tabs below, and your tab key to choose an item
Title:Ink Tablet with Peach Tree
Period:late Qing dynasty (1644–1911) or early Republic period (1912–49)
Date:late 19th–early 20th century
Culture:China
Medium:Black ink
Dimensions:H. 4 in. (10.2 cm); W. 3 7/8 in. (9.8 cm)
Classification:Ink
Credit Line:Rogers Fund, 1930
Object Number:30.76.197
Inscription: "Made by Fang Yulu under the supervision of Cheng Junfang in the bingzi year (1576) of the Wanli period".
桃都
桃有都木有精海日
夜出天雞時鳴崑崙
之食磅磄英懷君投
之報以瓊
于魯建元氏
University Art Museum, University of California at Berkeley. "Shadows of Mount Huang: Chinese Painting and Printing of the Anhui School," January 21, 1981–March 15, 1981.
Detroit Institute of Arts. "Shadows of Mount Huang: Chinese Painting and Printing of the Anhui School," July 15, 1981–September 15, 1981.
University Art Museum, University of Texas at Austin. "Shadows of Mount Huang: Chinese Painting and Printing of the Anhui School," October 9, 1981–November 22, 1981.
Princeton University Art Museum. "Shadows of Mount Huang: Chinese Painting and Printing of the Anhui School," December 12, 1981–January 23, 1982.
New York. China Institute in America. "Chinese Rare Books in American Collections," October 20, 1984–January 27, 1985.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Dreams of Yellow Mountain: Landscapes of Survival in Seventeenth-Century China," September 13, 2003–February 22, 2004.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "The Douglas Dillon Legacy: Chinese Painting for the Metropolitan Museum," March 12–August 8, 2004.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Chinese Painting, Masterpieces from the Permanent Collection," August 28, 2004–February 20, 2005.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Secular and Sacred: Scholars, Deities, and Immortals in Chinese Art," September 10, 2005–January 8, 2006.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Brush and Ink: The Chinese Art of Writing," September 2, 2006–January 21, 2007.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Journeys: Mapping the Earth and Mind in Chinese Art," February 10–August 26, 2007.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Celebration: The Birthday in Chinese Art," February 27–November 28, 2010.
Workshop of Cheng Junfang (Chinese, 1541–ca. 1620)
late 19th–early 20th century
Resources for Research
The Met's Libraries and Research Centers provide unparalleled resources for research and welcome an international community of students and scholars.
The Met Collection API is where all makers, creators, researchers, and dreamers can connect to the most up-to-date data and public domain images for The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.
Feedback
We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.
The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world.
