Venus Ink Stone

( chinaculture.org )

Updated: 2011-09-13

Venus inkstone from Xingzi county

The Venus inkstone, which is made from Venus stone, is mainly made in Xingzi county, Jiangxi province. It is said the first Venus inkstone was created by Tao Yuanming of the Eastern Jin Dynasty (317-420) and Song Dynasty (420-479).

The Xingzi Venus inkstone of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) was declined but then became prosperous during the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). There were hundreds of inkstone workshops in Xingzi county during the Republic of China period (1912-1949), and the Venus inkstone at that time received prizes from two international exhibitions.

After the founding of People's Republic of China, two professional inkstone factories established and highly developed the Venus inkstone. From 1980 to 1990, the Venus inkstone was frequently shown in national exhibitions and spread to Japan, South Korea, Southeast Asia, Europe and the US.

The Venus inkstone is made from Song stone produced in Xingzi county, which is rare but valuable, strong but fine. The traditional shape and pattern of the Venus inkstone are full of regional flavor because they come from local legend.