Inscription for a Buddhist Image Constructed to Commemorate the Duke of Shiping

Northern Wei dynasty (386�534), Taihe reign period (477�499), dated 498

Hanging scroll, ink rubbed on paper with inscribed colophons, ink on paper; 104.7 x 54.0 cm; rubbing of engraved stele: approx. 89.9 x 41.2 cm

Date of rubbing not given, probably Qing dynasty (1644�1911)

Inventory number: Biaozhou 830

This rubbing was taken from the Guyang Cave, Longmen Grottoes, situated on the banks of the Yellow River near Luoyang in Henan Province.� Not only is it counted among one of the Longmen ershi pin (Twenty Outstanding Inscriptions of Longmen), it has also been canonized as one of the Longmen si pin (Four Exemplary Inscriptions of Longmen).

The inscription on this rubbing was commissioned by the monk Huicheng to ensure the spiritual salvation of his deceased father, the gentleman Shiping, an aristocrat of the ruling Toba clan, whose name is absent from any other historical record of the Northern Wei dynasty.� Not only is the engraved panel of the finest possible quality in terms of design and workmanship, it is also one of the rare instances in which both the names of the calligrapher and the engraver are supplied: Zhu Yizhang and Meng Dawen respectively.� The angular calligraphic style with wedge-shaped dots and sharp-edged strokes is particularly notable, as are the many variant characters.� This inscription with its chessboard grid is also remarkable for having been cut in relief rather than in the usual intaglio; rubbings taken from this object show the rare appearance of characters in black ink instead of the normal white reserve.