Bamboo Carved “Meng Jiang Yu” Inscription Arm Rest

[Bamboo Carved “Mengjiang” Inscription Arm Rest]

Bamboo Carved “Mengjiang” Inscription Arm Rest, Jiaqing, Qing Dynasty, 25.9 cm long and 9.8 cm wide
The arm rest is rectangular and tiled in shape, relatively wide and heavy, with four short feet at four corners. Open an elliptical space on the front, with 34 characters in relief on the ground inside as decoration. The reverse side is inscribed with two paragraphs of a running script inscription, The first is: “Imitating the martial arts manual of Xue Shang, the Zhou Dynasty’s’ Meng Jiang Xi ‘inscription has 34 characters, but the first one is unrecognizable. The text reads:’ Uncle □ served as my son Meng Jiang Xi, whose eyebrows and eyebrows will last for thousands of years, while Yue Yue Yue’s men and women have no plans, and their children and grandchildren will always use it. ‘According to the word’ vessel ‘, which is similar to’ Qi Gong Xi ‘, it must be the same thing. The calligraphy and painting are ancient and abstruse, the meaning of the word is elegant, and good and valuable.'” Celebrating the autumn day of Bingyin and giving birth to Chen Hongshou. “Next engraving “Mansheng” small seal. Also, “Carving on gold, stone, and bamboo is an ancient Chinese scholar’s pastime of reading and chatting. He has not violated his remaining studies, and is very good at writing with an iron pen. It is the inscription that has been engraved three times. However, if it is perfect, those who are knowledgeable in ancient times will not regard the remaining words as Han characters. The next day, when he is alive, he will remember them again.” Carve the seal of “Man Sheng”. The engraved font is strict and neat, the strokes are rounded, and the strokes are meticulous. If it is hardened, it does not lose its auspicious taste
Note: The gold inscription on this article is copied from Volume 11 of the “Notes on the Recognition of Ancient Zhongding and Yi Wares” compiled by Xue Shanggong of the Song Dynasty. Later, the textual research and interpretation of the affixes are also based on various books. Meng Jiangyi has now been lost. According to the Integrated Interpretation of the Yin and Zhou Dynasties, there is a discrepancy between its interpretation and that of the Xue family: “Uncle Qing served as a concubine, Meng Jiang Toi, and his eyebrows and body were preserved for ten thousand years. During the reign of Tuotuo Xixi, there were no male or female periods, and his descendants and grandchildren would always use them.”
This utensil was made in the 11th year of Jiaqing Bingyin (1806) of the Qing Dynasty, with a clear era and even more rare. In the Qing Dynasty, epigraphy flourished greatly, and the controversy over steles and calligraphy in the late Qing Dynasty was also one of the focuses of the academic community. As far as its influence was concerned, there were also many people in the field of bamboo carving who were purely decorated with characters and calligraphy. From this arm rest, we can see a glimpse of the prevailing trend at that time.

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