Information on Chinese Seals (chops)

The art of seal-engraving can be traced back more than 3,000 years to the Shang -Yin Dynasty when the cutting of inscriptions on tortoise shells was the only way that the ideas of a human could be recorded. It flourished in the Qin Dynasty of 22 centuries ago, when people engraved their names on utensils and documents (of bamboo and wood) to show ownership or authorship. Out of this grew the cutting of personal names on small blocks of horn, jade or wood, namely the seals as we know them today.

Seals reflect the development of written Chinese. The earliest ones, those of the Qin and Han dynasties, bear the zhuan or curly script, which explains why the art of seal-cutting is still called zhuanke and also why the zhuan script is also known in English as "seal characters". As time went on, the other script styles appeared one after another on Chinese seals, which may now be cut in any style except the cursive at the option of the artist. Characters on seals may be cut in relief or in intaglio.

Seals cut as works of art should excel in three aspects-- calligraphy, composition and the engraver's handwork. The training of a skilled chop artist is rigorous. One must first learn the Seal Style of calligraphy and its history. These are ancient characters which are not commonly used in China today and most people are not familiar with them. Great mastery of the carving-knife, which is like a metal brush, is used to carve out the Yin spaces on the stone, creating the appropriate stroke characteristics. Considerable care must be taken because mistakes are not tolerated. The tiny surface of the stone makes for an extremely unforgiving workspace. Any tiny slip will require starting over again with a new stone. But the most difficult and time consuming aspect is in the design work. The artistic level of chop engravings depends on linear design, which involves the length of the strokes and the correct space management on the field of impression. There are many deep and complex design patterns within any good chop. Qualities like thinness and thickness, scarcity and density, must be considered, but there are also many ancient and official rules governing the arrangement of the strokes. For instance there is a rule known as "Call and Response" that states that the empty space between the lines of the characters on one side should be balanced by a corresponding space on the other side. A similar rule known as "Reflection" governs the balance of the shape and direction of the strokes on opposite sides of the chop. A carver must research, study and refer to many books in the preparation of the design. He or she is expected, first and foremost, to have their engraved work reach a state of beautiful simplicity of style while still imparting an antique appearance.

Today, stone is the most widely used material in seal-engraving. Among all the stones, the Shoushan stone is the most coveted. This increasingly rare material is only found at the northern outskirts of Shoushan County, Fuzhou City, China. Its timeless beauty is unrivaled and has been the stone of choice for nobility since the Tang Dynasty (AD618-906). Surpassing even jade in value, Shoushan stone carvings are truly small masterpieces.

Seal-cutting is traditionally listed along with painting, calligraphy and poetry as one of the "four arts" expected of the accomplished scholar and a unique part of the Chinese cultural heritage. A seal stamp in red is not only the signature on a work of calligraphy or painting but an indispensable touch to liven it up.