Chapter 85 Du Ganglou
All told, it's just six.
And which of them is not a master calligrapher, whose name is etched in history?
As the saying goes, one's handwriting reflects one's character. Even when imitating, one will inevitably leave traces of one's personal writing habits and style between the lines.
Looking at the words again from the opposite perspective, Lin Sicheng felt as if the clouds had parted and the sun was shining through, and his mind was suddenly enlightened:
The brushwork is light and unrestrained, the lines are rounded and smooth, the spacing between lines is spacious, and the structure is lively.
The brushstrokes are natural and vivid, simple and elegant. They appear gentle but are actually full of strength and vigor. The outer layer is beautiful and the inner layer is solid. Every character is both strong and gentle.
But the character "观" is only one aspect; there is another: even forgeries have varying degrees of quality.
Like the one in front of us:
The imitation is so similar to the original that even Zhao Mengfu would probably hesitate before realizing when he had written this piece.
And, genuine Yuan Dynasty court-grade paper, almost indistinguishable from the real thing…
Even if we don't say we can assemble them perfectly, just finding and gathering all the parts is something that is beyond the capabilities of ordinary people.
The most crucial point is that the person who forged the calligraphy must have possessed the original of Zhao Mengfu's "Heart Sutra" now treasured in the National Palace Museum in Taipei, and had copied it hundreds of times; otherwise, it would be impossible to forge it so closely.
Combined with the time point of "mid-to-late Qing Dynasty", Lin Sicheng's eyes lit up: a huge character "项" suddenly popped into his mind and lingered there.
In an instant, the first five of the six masters vanished without a trace, leaving only the last one: Dong Qichang.
Because of the character "Xiang" that popped into my mind: Xiang Yuanbian, courtesy name Molin, tomorrow night.
He was the most outstanding appraiser and collector during the mid-to-late Ming Dynasty, as well as the largest and most professional antique dealer and forger.
The Xiang family's collection is equivalent to half of the Forbidden City... This wasn't said by Lin Sicheng, but by a leader after the founding of the People's Republic of China.
The Xiang family's wealth was immense, reaching its peak for a time... This is what Emperor Wanli said.
In the second year of the Shunzhi reign, the Qing army captured Jiaxing and looted all of Xiang Shi's collection, which was then transported to the capital. Among them were more than 40,000 books, calligraphy, paintings, rubbings, and inscriptions by famous figures throughout history.
This is how "Tianlinlang" (the library of the Qing Dynasty's Imperial Household Department) came into being, and how "Shiqu Baoji" (a collection of documents recorded by the Qing court) came into being... So what the leader said is not an exaggeration at all.
The key point is that the original work by Zhao Mengfu that is now in Taipei is among them.
The exquisite craftsmanship of Xiang Shi's collection and his unparalleled imitation of ancient styles are unmatched in the country... This is what Emperor Qianlong said.
How convincing is the imitation?
After the Palace Museum was established in 1925, experts began to study whether the works in the Xiang family’s collection, such as Gu Kaizhi’s “Nymph of the Luo River” from the Eastern Jin Dynasty, Wang Xizhi’s “Letter After Snowfall” and “Along the River During the Qingming Festival”, Mao Gong Ding, and countless bronze and stone seals, were genuine or forgeries.
Even now, research on it continues.
Just like Huang Gongwang's "Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains": there are six versions in total, including those in the National Palace Museum in Beijing and Taipei, as well as the Zhejiang Provincial Museum and the Shanghai Museum.
They all claim to be authentic, but five of them were actually written by Qiu Ying at Xiang Molin's request, with inscriptions by Wen Zhengming and Dong Qichang.
He and Wen Zhengming were close friends despite their age difference. One-third of the works by Wen Zhengming collected by the two Palace Museums bear his seal.
Dong Qichang and his son were close friends. Before passing the imperial examination, Dong Qichang lived in Xiang's mansion for eight years, practicing calligraphy and copying model texts for eight years.
Dong Qichang's own words in "Mo Chan Xuan Shuo": "When I traveled to study under Li, I thoroughly examined the Jin and Tang dynasty calligraphy collected by Xiang Zijing, and only then did I realize that my previous painstaking efforts had been in vain..."
During that time, Dong Qichang himself lost count of how many times he wrote for Xiang Molin and how many works by famous calligraphers he copied.
The key point is that Dong Qichang did indeed forge Zhao Mengfu's original works, and both the National Palace Museum in Beijing and Taipei have collections of them, some of which bear Xiang Molin's seal.
He did indeed copy the Heart Sutra, although the original has been lost and only rubbings remain.
Therefore, when you look at this calligraphy now, it's not just similar, but it is exactly what it is.
Of course, Lin Sicheng's word alone is not enough; he needs to prove it.
In the past, it would have been extremely difficult, because it would have required comparison with the original works and rubbings treasured in the Palace Museum.
But now, it's easy... not because of Wang Qizhi, but because of those seals that haven't been seen yet.
Firstly, there is a round stamp in the upper right corner of the painting, about the size of a finger, but it is extremely intricately carved: amidst a profusion of flowers and densely packed decorative patterns, there is a raised "人" (person) character.
Previously, Lin Sicheng would have been completely baffled. But now that he had determined it to be a forgery by Xiang Molin, with Dong Qichang as the writer, the origin of the seal became obvious: it was a coded seal used by Xiang Molin to prevent others from forging his work, or to prevent them from selling his forgeries as genuine.
The reason why Bao Li refused to accept this calligraphy is exactly the same: he was afraid of damaging his reputation.
Also known as the "Thousand Character Classic" seal, it is made by taking characters from the Thousand Character Classic and engraving patterns that contain hidden codes.
For example, five of the paintings of Huang Gongwang's "Dwelling in the Fuchun Mountains" in Beijing, Taipei, and major museums all have this seal.
With just this seal, without Wang Qizhi needing to make any introductions, or even with his teacher's wife making a phone call, as long as it's taken to the Palace Museum, the leaders are guaranteed to open the Wenhua Hall immediately and take out Dong Qichang's original work for comparison.
Because the Palace Museum possesses over four thousand forgeries bearing this seal, including calligraphy and paintings, all of which are imitations by renowned artists, the Palace Museum is more eager than anyone to determine who forged the works…
Now look at the remaining two stamps: one is slightly smaller and stamped below the painting center to the left, while the other is slightly larger and stamped directly above the inscription.
The handwriting is neat and dignified, and the ink marks are of uniform depth, but unfortunately, it is all Sanskrit. Moreover, it is the Brahmi script that existed before the fourth century.
To put it simply, it's similar to the bird-and-insect seal script of Chinese characters, and it's only used for stone carvings and inscriptions.
According to esoteric Buddhist doctrines, it was created by the supreme deity Vairocana Buddha. Therefore, important scriptures and Buddhist texts often bear seals with this type of scripture to enhance their power.
It is also a collector's seal.
However, it was extremely difficult to decipher, no less difficult than translating the insect and bird seal script into modern Chinese characters. Lin Sicheng could only write it on paper first and translate it letter by letter.
When the first translation was completed, Lin Sicheng narrowed his eyes: "Tsokchen, the Holy Temple of the Highest Yoga Tantra?"
Anuttarayoga is the highest esoteric practice of Tantra, and Tsokchen refers to the prayer hall.
The term "sacred temple," if taken literally, refers to the place where Buddhas and Bodhisattvas practiced. However, in the context of the Yuan and Qing dynasties, it referred to only one place: the imperial palace!
To put it more bluntly: it was a place where the emperor practiced esoteric yoga.
The key difference lies in the fact that the color of this seal is noticeably redder and brighter than the "人" (person) character seal, indicating that it was applied much later. Because the oxidation time was shorter, the fading was less, resulting in the color difference.
Roughly speaking, the time difference is about two hundred years.
Two hundred years after Xiang Molin and Dong Qichang...the mid-Qing Dynasty?
Lin Sicheng's pupils couldn't help but shrink: the Forbidden City's Dugang Tower, the Yoga Temple.
A place specifically for Emperor Qianlong to practice esoteric Buddhist methods...
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
