Ink brush

Ink brushes (simplified Chinese: 毛笔; traditional Chinese: 毛筆; pinyin: máo bǐ) are used in Chinese calligraphy. They are also used in Chinese painting and descendant brush painting styles. The ink brush was invented in China, believed to be around 300 B.C. Together with the inkstone, inkstick and Xuan paper, these four writing implements form the Four Treasures of the Study.

Brushes differ greatly in terms of size, texture, material and cost.

The hair one chooses to use depends on one's needs at the moment, certain kinds of brushes are more suited to certain script styles and individuals than others are. Synthetic hair is not used. Prices vary greatly depending on the quality of the brush, cheap brushes cost less than a US dollar while expensive can cost more than a thousand. Currently, the finest brushes are made in the town of Shanlian, in the district of Huzhou, Zhejiang province.

The earliest intact ink brush was found in 1954, in the tomb of a Chu citizen during the Warring States period (475-221 BCE), located in an archaeological dig site Zuo Gong Shan 15 near Changsha (長沙). This primitive version of an ink brush had a wooden stalk, and a bamboo tube secures the bundle of hair to the stalk. Legend wrongly credits the invention of the ink brush to the later Qin general Meng Tian.

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Wikipedia