Chen Cai: The rubbings of the inscriptions are ancient books Tablet fever in the digital age(6)
Chen Cai: The rubbings of the inscriptions are ancient books Tablet fever in the digital age(6)
Chen Cai: The rubbings of the inscriptions are ancient books Tablet fever in the digital age(6)
The topic of "Tablet Fever in the Digital Age" was published in the 4th issue of Cultural Relics World in 2024
Text: Chen Cai
Deputy Director and Associate Research Librarian of Shanghai Museum Library
How to highlight the attributes of the ancient books in the arrangement and display of the rubbings, and display the rubbings of the tablets in combination with the aesthetic taste and acceptance psychology of the current audience? From May 16 to August 13, 2023, the Shanghai Museum will hold the exhibition "Jade Liufang". In order to fully reflect the shape of the ancient books of the Song and Yuan dynasties and show the characteristics of the ancient books of the Song and Yuan dynasties in the Shanghai Museum, we have comprehensively sorted out the ancient books of the Song and Yuan dynasties in the museum, selected 66 of them, and displayed the three versions of the manuscript, the engraved and the rubbing. The "Colorful Han Ink" part shows the appearance of the Song Dynasty manuscripts in the museum's collection, with 7 exhibits; the "Ancient Oak Shines" part displays the exquisiteness and rarity of the Song and Yuan Dynasty carvings in the museum's collection, with 34 exhibits; and the "Baotuo Fax" part displays the historical value and calligraphy value of the Song and Yuan Dynasty rubbings in the museum's collection, with 25 exhibits, including 20 inscriptions and 5 Fati. The exhibition takes into account the material and spiritual attributes of ancient books, and is supplemented by cultural landscapes, extended videos, and interactive activities to reveal the edition, academic research and artistic aesthetic value of the ancient books of the Song and Yuan dynasties in the library. The exhibition strategy of this part is reviewed from three aspects: exhibition positioning, exhibit arrangement and display mode.
Chen Cai: The rubbings of the inscriptions are ancient books Tablet fever in the digital age(6)
Poster of the exhibition "Jade Liufang".
The exhibition positioning tablet was expanded and bound into a book, which became the form of a book, that is, it was regarded as a classic. In the Book of Sui and the Book of Classics, it is recorded that Liang has a stone scripture and a three-character stone scripture, which refers to the rubbings of the Xiping stone scripture and the Zhengshi stone scripture, which is the rubbings of the stele stone. As a model of calligraphy, the "Chunhua Pavilion Post", Chao Gongwu's "Junzhai Reading Journal" recorded its rubbing, which is the rubbing. At the same time, whether it is a stele or a fati, the writing of its Chinese characters is rigorous and natural, and many of them are directly from the hands of famous artists, which is a model of calligraphy. In addition, its ingenuity, such as the extension and binding skills, if the use of paper, the method of ink, are worthy of attention. Generally speaking, the rubbings of the stele can be displayed from different angles: first, as ancient books, secondly, as calligraphy works, thirdly, as rubbing techniques, and fourthly, as binding techniques. From different display angles, the display form of the rubbings of the inscription is determined. If it is exhibited as an ancient book, it is necessary to focus on showing the historical value and edition value of the rubbings of the inscriptions, and pay attention to the content of the inscriptions, Tibetan seals and inscriptions. If it is displayed as a calligraphy work, it is necessary to focus on the calligraphy style and genre shown in the rubbing, pay attention to the calligraphy skills, and at the same time, it is necessary to reveal the inheritance and evolution of calligraphy style from the perspective of calligraphy history. If it is displayed as a topography technique, it is necessary to focus on the transmission techniques and carrier materials of rubbing and topping, and pay attention to different forms of transmission and extension, such as cicada wing extension, Wujin extension, felt wax extension, inlay extension, color extension, hologram extension, high-relief extension, double hook, Xiangtuo, Yingtuo, etc., and at the same time, it is necessary to reveal the development and evolution of the extension technique from the perspective of social history. If it is displayed as a binding technique, it is necessary to focus on the mounting and cutting of the rubbing, pay attention to the binding form and the way of cutting, and at the same time, from the aesthetic point of view, take into account the internal functionality and external formal beauty of the rubbing. Of course, these perspectives are only different in emphasis, and they are not exclusive, but compatible.
Chen Cai: The rubbings of the inscriptions are ancient books Tablet fever in the digital age(6)
"Jade Liufang" aims to display the ancient books of the Song and Yuan dynasties in the museum, so the rubbings of the inscriptions need to be displayed as ancient books. For example, the "Epitaph of Liang Xiaofu and Concubine Jing" contains Xiao Fu's grandson's name Long, which can make up for the lack of "Book of Liang" and "Southern History", and "Jiang Yao Tablet" has a detailed account, which can make up for the lack of biographies in "Old Tang Book" and "New Tang Book". We also pay attention to the collectors and their collection of book seals, inscriptions, inscriptions, inscriptions, and viewing paragraphs to display, and also make some inscriptions, inscriptions, inscriptions, and viewing paragraphs as backplates. The exhibition mainly focuses on the value of editions and historical materials, but also takes into account the value of calligraphy, rubbing and binding.
Chen Cai: The rubbings of the inscriptions are ancient books Tablet fever in the digital age(6)
Hand drawing of rubbing production process
Exhibit arrangementShanghai Museum is an important town for the public collection of inscriptions, with more than 30 rubbings in the Song and Yuan dynasties, and there is no lack of unique books. Based on the positioning of displaying rubbings as ancient books, taking into account the completeness of the times, the completeness of the categories, the richness of the editions, and taking into account various factors such as academic value, artistic value, length of exhibition line, and schedule of exhibits, we finally selected 25 books to be exhibited in "Jade Liufang" (see Shanghai Museum, ed.: "Jade Liufang: The Essence of Ancient Books of the Song and Yuan Dynasties in the Shanghai Museum"). As for the "Fahua Temple Tablet", "Fangyuan Nunnery Record", "Rebuilding the Shu Ancestor Temple Tablet" and other solitary copies and "Huairenji King Shengjiao Order" (Zhou Zhitai), "Mysterious Tower Tablet" (Gong Xinming), "Chunhua Pavilion Post" (Pan Zu Chun Ben), "Linjiang Erwang Post" (fragmentary version), "Ru Post" (Wang Duobaben) and other good extensions had to choose the opportunity to display again. There are two categories of steles: steles and inscriptions. Due to the complexity of the stele itself, the academic community has not yet reached a unified opinion on its sub-categories. There are two sub-categories of engraved posts: cluster posts and single engraved posts. Rong Geng's "Cong Ti Mu" is divided into past dynasties, dynasties, individuals, and miscellaneous categories, and it is clearly stated that Cong Ti is "difficult to compile subheadings" and "difficult to determine the division and combination" (see Volume 18 of Rong Geng's Complete Academic Works, Zhonghua Book Company).
Chen Cai: The rubbings of the inscriptions are ancient books Tablet fever in the digital age(6)
As an exhibition of ancient books, we have classified and arranged the selected 25 rubbings from the perspective of bibliography and taking into account some specific conditions of rubbings, and divided them into two categories: inscriptions and scriptures. There are 20 exhibits in the inscription category, of which 1 is a Southern Dynasty tablet and 19 are Tang Dynasty tablets, which are arranged in order according to the age of the carved stones. As for the same stone, it is in the order of the extension time. There are 5 exhibits in the law post category, including 2 single carved posts and 3 series posts. If the order of the bibliography is strictly followed, the order of the three series of posts should be "Chunhua Pavilion Post" (the rarest book), "Chunhua Pavilion Post" (Xiu Nei Si Ben) and "Lanting Continuation Post" (upper and lower volumes). Considering that from September 24 to October 31, 2003, the "Chunhua Pavilion Post" Rare Book Exhibition was held in the same exhibition hall, and the display of this book page by page attracted the attention of the Chinese cultural circles, we specially selected "Chunhua Pavilion Post" (the most rare book) as the finale exhibit of "Jade Liufang", in order to echo the sensational exhibition 20 years ago. As a result, the three series of posts in the "Jade Pavilion Liufang" are exhibited in the order of "Orchid Pavilion Continuation" (upper and lower volumes), "Chunhua Pavilion Post" (Xiu Nei Siben), and "Chunhua Pavilion Post" (the most rare book). "Chunhua Pavilion Posts" (the most rare book) exhibits Wang Xizhi's "Appropriate Books" on the end page of volume 6, and we place "The Continuation of the Orchid Pavilion" (the first and second volumes) in front of the "Chunhua Pavilion Posts" (the most rare book), so we deliberately chose Zhang Zhi, Huangxiang, and the Seven Sages of the Bamboo Forest before Wang Xizhi, as well as Wang Xizhi's "Wang Luoti" for exhibition.
Chen Cai: The rubbings of the inscriptions are ancient books Tablet fever in the digital age(6)
One of the problems that arises from the display of the simulated restoration of "Jiucheng Palace Liquan Ming" and "what to exhibit" is "how to exhibit". What kind of display method can be used to overcome the characteristics of the flat exhibits that are not highly ornamental, and to convey the knowledge and information constructed by the curator to the audience? Regarding the content of the exhibition, considering the differences between the exhibition of ancient books and the exhibition of calligraphy, the rubbings exhibited by "Yu Yu Liufang" do not seek to be complete, but highlight its documentary nature, and display the end pages of the volume, the examination base, the inscription, the cover, the binding, etc. In this way, the content of the previous manuscript and engraved part is also maintained. The five editions of the "Sacred Order of the King of Huairenji" are compared and exhibited, the first piece of Qi Shuyu's book exhibits the end page of the volume, the second piece of Zhang Yingzhao Bingben exhibits the end page of the scroll and the page where the examination base "Entanglement So" is located, the third piece of Zhu Zhichi's book exhibits the pages of the examination base "Entanglement So" and "The Quilt of Sacred Mercy", the fourth piece of Chu Deyi's book shows the end page of the volume of the Qing Dynasty King Wenzhi's book of Tibetan scripture paper, and the fifth piece of Gong Xinming's book shows the page where the "Sacred Mercy Quilt" is located, which can intuitively help the audience establish the concept of editions of rubbing. Regarding the knowledge aid, considering that most of the audience knows the rubbings of the inscriptions from the perspective of calligraphy, in "Yu Yu Liufang", we have adopted some intuitive methods to pass on the background knowledge of the rubbings of the tablets to the audience, so as to help the audience understand the rubbings of the tablets from the perspective of ancient books. First, hand-drawn. At the beginning of the rubbing, we put a hand-drawn drawing of the rubbing production process. After the rubbing is completed, it is cut and framed, and it is put into a pool to become a book. Second, the restoration of the monument. Due to the Song and Yuan rubbings seen now, the vast majority of them are cut and framed, and the whole paper rubbings are rare. In order to help the audience understand the original appearance of the rubbing, we placed Chu Suiliang's "Jiucheng Palace Liquan Ming" in the form of a light box on one side, and Yan Zhenqing's "The Legend of the Immortal Altar of Magu" with the atmosphere of the Tang Dynasty on the other, which was compared with the exhibits in the exhibition hall. Since the original tablet of "Jiucheng Palace Liquan Ming" is still there, we have restored it according to Qi Shuyu's book, and the original tablet of "The Legend of the Immortal Altar of the Big Character Magu" does not exist, so we have simulated it according to the traces of Zhang Tingji's cut-and-frame. Third, expand the video. We have edited the video "The Birth of a Rubbing" to vividly show the materials and production process required for the production of rubbing. At the end of the video, the sentence "The rubbings of the inscriptions produced by the transmission of paper and ink are an important carrier of the historical memory and ideological wisdom of the Chinese nation, and an indispensable and important part of the history of mainland classics" to deepen the audience's understanding.
Chen Cai: The rubbings of the inscriptions are ancient books Tablet fever in the digital age(6)
"The Legend of the Immortal Altar of the Big Character Magu" Simulation Restoration Diagram Epilogue Rubbing is a kind of flat exhibit, which is not as ornamental as three-dimensional exhibits, and the spiritual attributes contained in it are expressed in the language of the exhibition and effectively transmitted to the audience, which is the key to the success of the Rubbing Exhibition. "When using documentary exhibits as display materials for curation, on the one hand, we should recognize the urgency of information interpretation brought about by the particularity of documentary exhibits, and on the other hand, we should also understand that the greater value of documentary exhibits is to reconstruct the distant world and its relevance and enlightenment to contemporary life" (Zhou Jingjing, Research on the Exhibition of Documentary Exhibits, Fudan University Press, 2022, p. 186). How to display the attributes of ancient books in the rubbings of inscriptions, connect the past and the present, and take into account the aesthetic taste and receptivity of the current audience, is the key issue we think about in the curatorial process. "Jade Liufang" solves this problem very well, and both professional scholars and ordinary enthusiasts have given high recognition. The successful practice of "Jade Liufang" provides a vivid case for the exhibition strategy of the rubbing.
The original title of this article is "Rubbing the Tablet as an Ancient Book - Shanghai Museum's "Jade Liufang" Exhibition Strategy", which was published in the 4th issue of "Cultural Relics World" in 2024
