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Subject:Translation and possible dating of ink sticks
Posted By: Shea Thu, May 16, 2019 IP: 173.79.179.28

Hello all,
When I saw these I had no idea what they were and the seller explained that they are ink sticks. They were so interesting to me that I bought them. The owner was not sure of the age, only that they were "old". Each one has a gilded depiction of a woman on one side, some with extreme wear. Five also have the same inscription on the side with the figure. And each one has different characters on the reverse side, along with a seal. I would greatly appreciate your help with translation.







Subject:Re: Translation and possible dating of ink sticks
Posted By: mikeoz Fri, May 17, 2019

It is very hard to judge how old these ink sticks are. The box looks as if it has been artificially aged, with lots of staining of cloth - possibly just with tea.

If you examine one of the the inksticks very carefully you might find a few Chinese characters raised on one of the side edges. These could indicate a date, or at least a date when the original moulds were made.

If possible, a macro photo of any characters would be a help.

Subject:Re: Translation and possible dating of ink sticks
Posted By: Shea Fri, May 17, 2019

Mikeoz, you were absolutely right. There are characters on the sides of the 3 sticks that do not have the inscription. These pictures are the best I could do. I tried adjusting color and contrast to make the characters stand out more.







Subject:Re: Translation and possible dating of ink sticks
Posted By: rat Sat, May 18, 2019

I agree with Mikeoz, but thanks for the photos of the sides of the inksticks, which indicate that they are being portrayed as products of Hu Kaiwen, one of the better known inkmakers, who started in the late 18th century. The name is still used today but I don't know whether its use is licensed. On the front of the inksticks (the side with the ladies), appear three raised indicating that the women are all characters in China's most popular novel, 紅樓夢, translated into English as The Story of the Stone
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/china/9434104/Chinas-Story-of-the-Stone-the-best-book-youve-never-heard-of.html

Subject:Re: Translation and possible dating of ink sticks
Posted By: Shea Sun, May 19, 2019

Thanks for the additional information, Rat.
Do the characters translate to the alleged ink maker's name? Or is it an actual date? Also, how would I know if the sticks were authentic or be able to approximate an age? I am going to the Antiques Road Show in a couple of weeks. Is it worth it to take these for an assessment or even to ask my local appraiser friend for an opinion? He actually does appraisals for the government, so I really try not to ask for his opinion unless I think it is worth his time (and my money for a full appraisal).

Subject:Re: Translation and possible dating of ink sticks
Posted By: rat Mon, May 20, 2019

The characters are the inkmaker's name and place (Anhui province); the inksticks are not dated but as Mikeoz suggested are almost certainly quite recently made but put in a distressed box to give the appearance of age. They are actual inksticks--you can grind them with water to get ink--but similar sets of inksticks can be purchased at flea markets and the like in China today. They are also not clearly examples of Hu Kaiwen's own designs (I don't see anything of the kind online when I google Hu Kaiwen and the content of the titleslip on your box). Rather they are sloppily executed copies of some pre-existing design. No need to take them on Antiques Roadshow or have them appraised.

Subject:Re: Translation and possible dating of ink sticks
Posted By: Shea Tue, May 21, 2019

Thanks for the follow up response.

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