Huizhou Arts and Crafts at AcornPlanet.com A Seed for a better planet for all of us!	Search in Detail

This is a sample made "Antique" inkcake, a lot of similar pieces are on EBay sold as Old Dynasty inksticks. Scroll down for more samples that we shot the picture while we were in China.

This is a sample made "Antique" inkcake, similar pieces of claimed "antique" color ink sticks that are on EBay are same kind of made antique inksticks. We list this page, because we want to educate the public, be wary when someone claims something is antique. This is a beautifully made "Antique Imatation" inkcake. It's a beautiful display, what we against is people label it as 19th century antique and cheat. The work that had been put into to make this is quite a bit. First a very skilled reverse wood carver need to carve the landscape design and the beautiful original calligraphy onto a very hard wood mold. From what I know the master reverse carver in my hometown (She County) has not had a student for the last 30 years. Because inkstone and inkstick for use is a dying culture, to teach a student to master the skill of reverse carving the ink cake mold is like breaking your own rice bowl (the Chinese way of saying loosing your job). We have been thinking of ways to reserve this crafts. So far we have not make anything to the market yet. Then the left over soot from making artists inksticks and other black material are kneded and pressed into the mold to make the inkcake. Then it has to go through many many round of slowing drying process. Otherwise it's easy to crack. To make it look antique, the inkcake are being soaked in the water that washes the rice, ... Buy it, because it's nice, not because it's antique. And do not pay anitique price, then you are fine!