Bowl, Changsha Ware

This bowl, found off the coast of Beilitung Island, Sumatra-Indonesia, is among a large number of Tang shipwreck ceramics discovered in the region in 1997. While the brown glaze and underglaze decoration are typical of the popular Changsha ware of the Tang dynasty, the “wild cursive” calligraphy found on this piece is extremely rare. So far, the Art Museum’s bowl is the only one known to have such decoration. The eight Chinese characters arranged in three columns can say:
“Feel at ease at your military general seat.
When (you) gain a victory, the king will appear.”
The content of the writing indicates it could be part of the text of an imperial edict.

""Wild cursive"" calligraphy, a variant of cursive script, was popularized by the monk Huaisu, a native of Changsha, in the eighth century. Among the four styles of Chinese calligraphy (seal script, clerical script, standard script, and cursive script), cursive is the most dynamic in its expression and also the most difficult to master. ""Wild cursive,"" a reaction against the refinement and elegance of classic scripts, is more spontaneous and free.