Four Treasures of the Study

Hu Zhou writing brush, Hui ink, Xuan paper and Duan inkstone are collectively called "four treasures of the study." Hu Zhou writing brush, Xuan paper, Hui ink and She inkstone were produced in Anhui province and have had an important influence in history. Anhui is also known as the hometown of “four treasures of the study”. In th...more

Hu Zhou writing brush, Hui ink, Xuan paper and Duan inkstone are collectively called "four treasures of the study." Hu Zhou writing brush, Xuan paper, Hui ink and She inkstone were produced in Anhui province and have had an important influence in history. Anhui is also known as the hometown of “four treasures of the study”. In the Tang Dynasty, Xuanzhou was the national brush-making center. The purple tip writing brush is like a cone and knife. Thus it is highly respected by the world. The Xuan paper is soft and delicate, white and durable, known as the "The life span of the Xuan paper is more than a thousand years". The She inkstone is firm and fine and is one of the four famous inkstones. Hui ink is known as " It is like a stone in decade but change into lacquer within one moment". The paintings and calligraphy using the Hui ink are elegant and the decoration is gorgeous and delicate. After the end of the Tang Dynasty, Anhui's four treasures of the study were always the tributes to the court. With the unique conditions, Anhui Museum has a rich collection of four treasures of the study from the Han and Tang Dynasties to the Ming and Qing Dynasties, which formed distinctive features of the museum collection.