A glossary of terms used with Chinese-style seals.
Seal Glossary
See Seal Knobs for terms about the decoration on the top of seals.
See Seal Materials for terms about the materials used in the making of seals.
Contact me if you have any corrections or additions.
badiezhuan 八疊篆
"Eight fold zhuan;" a script used in seal carving in which vertical lines are folded back and forth to fill the available space. See also: jiu die wen.
baiwen 白文
"White writing." A seal with white characters on a red background; sometimes referred to by the western art term intaglio. See also: yin wen.
bantongyin 半通印
"Halved seal;" a half-squared, or half-sized seal. A rectangular seal "for lower-rank officials or official seals of government offices." (Sun Weizu, p.119)
biankuan 邊款
"Side signature." A seal colophon, or side inscription on a seal stone which "usually appears on the left side of the seal when the seal is held in the correct position for making an impression." A side inscription, if long, will start on the left side and then continue to the left around the sides of the seal stone. The illustration shows a rubbing of a side inscription.
bidao 筆刀
"Writing knife." A graver (for engraving characters on a seal, etc.). In Western engraving it's also known as a burin. See also: ke dao, tie bi, yin dao.
biehaoyin 別號印
"Other name seal;" a courtesy/epithet name seal.
burin
A western term for the steel tool used for engraving. Sometimes used as a translation for the Chinese seal carving knife although the tools in east and west look nothing alike and are not used in the same way.
changfangyin 長方印
"Rectangular seal."
changyuanyin 長圓印
"Oval seal." See also: tou yin.
cheng-ju-tao
See: zhengrudao
chicken-blood stone
Can refer to any stone with red coloring, though the term usually refers to a variety of changhua stone. For more see: Seal Material. See also: ji xue shi.
ch'ieh-yu wen
See: qieyuwen
chiu-tieh wen
See: jiudiewen
chongdao 衝刀 / 冲刀
"Vigorous knife;" a seal-cutting technique using a swift knife/pushing cut.
chongniaoshu 蟲鳥書
See: niaochongshu
chuandaiyin 穿帶印
"Pierced through (a belt) seal;" a rectangular seal carved on two sides with a hole between to thread a cord through. The illustration is a bronze seal from the Han dynasty.
chuilushu 垂露書
"Dewdrop script." "The ch'ui-lu-shu is a variant of the hsiao-chuan [xiaozhuang], the stroke-ends broaden into 'dewlike drops.' The style is said to have been invented by Lang Ts'ao-hsi of Han." (Contag & Wang, p.xxiv)
ciyuyin 詞語印
"Word seals" as opposed to pictorial seals.
dachuo 打戳
Literally: "strike (with a) seal;" a colloquial expression for stamping with a seal.
dandao 單刀
"Single knife;" a seal-cutting technique. See: danrudao.
danrudao 單入刀
"Single entering knife;" a seal-cutting technique of cutting from one side of a line only, either toward or away from the line, with the result that one side of the line is smooth and the other side ragged. Qi Baishi (1864-1957) almost exclusively used this technique (as seen in the accompanying illustration). Also called dandao.
daofa 刀法
"Knife method/art(s);" knifework in the design of seals. See also: zhang fa, zhuan fa.
daoqu 刀[?]
Cutting pleasure, or the pleasure of cutting seals.
dayin 大印
"Great seal;" the seal of power.
dazhuan 大篆
"Large seal script." "The term large seal script traditionally refers to written Chinese dating from before the Qin dynasty—now used either narrowly to the writing of the Western and early Eastern Zhou dynasty (c. 1046 – 403 BCE), or more broadly to also include the oracle bone script (c. 1250 – c. 1000 BCE). The term deliberately contrasts the small seal script, the official script standardized throughout China during the Qin dynasty, often called merely 'seal script'. Due to the term's lack of precision, scholars often prefer more specific references regarding the provenance of whichever written samples are being discussed." [Wikipedia] Large seal script is often used on seals although small seal script is more common. See also: xiao zhuan.
dengpai 鄧派
"Deng school." The Deng school of seal carving is named after its founder Deng Shiru (1743-1805).
diaochongzhuan 雕蟲篆
"Carving insects/worms seal script;" a type of calligraphy featuring characters twisting and turning like worms.
Eight Masters of Xiling
See: xi ling ba jia
dong 凍
"Jelly" refers to the shiny transparent look of a stone. For more see: Seal Material.
fangyin 方印
"Square seal;" the most common shape for a seal.
fengni 封泥
"Sealing clay." See also: ni feng.
fengniaowenxi 風鳥紋璽
"Phoenix script seal;" a seal with a phoenix pattern.
fu 紱
Silk ribbon traditionally attached to a seal.
guanfang 關防
Oblong official seal.
gushu 古鉥
Ancient seal. Usually refers to Han dynasty (206 BCE-220 CE) and older seals.
guwen 古文
"Ancient script;" pre-Qin dynasty (221-206 BCE) writing often used on seals. See also: xiaozhuan.
guxiyin 古璽印
"Ancient [imperial] seal." See also: xi yin.
guyin 古印
"Ancient seal" usually refers to Han dynasty (206 BCE-220 CE) and older seals.
haibao 海豹
The Chinese word for seal (the animal). This has absolutely nothing to do with Chinese seal carving.
han-chien wen
See: hanjianwen
hanjianwen 汗簡文
"Han-chien wen is a curvilinear style of seal script." (Contag & Wang, p.xxiv) This example is by the artist Li Liufang (李流芳) who lived from 1575 to 1629.
haste seal
See: ji jiu zhang
hengdao 衡刀
A seal carving technique where "the carver cuts horizontally left to right, and not vertically." (Contag & Wang, p.xxvi) [I'm not sure what's meant by this.]
heng-tao
See: hengdao
huashuyin 花書印
"Floral writing seal." [I'm not sure what's meant by this.]
huayayin 花押印
In my Chinese dictionary huaya is defined as a "signature on documents." This word huayayin is apparently used for seals using Mongolian characters. Popular in the Yuan dynasty (1260-1368). See also: yuan ya yin.
huipai 徽派
"Hui school." Here hui is used as an abbreviation for Anhui Province where this school of seal carving originated. See also: wan pai.
huluyin 葫蘆印
"Bottle gourd seal;" a seal with the outline in the shape of a gourd.
huowenxi 火紋璽
"Fire pattern seal."
intaglio
This term [pronounced in-tah-lee-yoh] is often used for yinwen/baiwen seals. A western art term referring to a raised background with subject carved out. We should stop using this term for seal carving as it confuses almost everyone.
jelly
See: dong
ji 記
Seal, mark, sign.
jianyin 監印
"Inspector/supervisor [or keeper] of the seal." A government position in imperial China.
jijiuzhang 急就章
Haste seal; literally: "urgently improvised seal." Often made by the military in ancient China where an officer might need to be quickly promoted. Blank bronze seals were sometimes brought along on campaign just for this purpose. Some modern seal carvers imitate their clumsy look. See also: xian zhang.
jiudiewen 九疊文
"Nine fold writing;" a script used in seal carving in which lines are folded to fill up the available space. Created after the Southern Song dynasty (1127-1279), primarily for official seals. "A variation of the miu-chuan [miu zhuan] ... The strokes appear in regular layers from three to nine times. On an imperial seal they may form as many as thirteen layers. This style was formulated in the Ming dynasty." (Contag & Wang, p.xxiv) See also: ba die zhuan.
jixueshi 雞血石
"Chicken-blood stone." For more see: Seal Material.
jiyuyin 吉語印
"Auspicious word(s) seal;" seals with propitious phrases/auspicious words. The one shown here says "lasting good luck."
juan 鐫
Carve, engrave.
juanke 鐫刻
Engrave. See also: zhuan ke.
kedao 刻刀
"Carving knife," also known as a burin, graver, or seal-cutting knife. See also: bi dao, tie bi, yin dao.
ketuzhang 刻圖章
"To carve a seal." This picture shows the famous artist Qi Baishi working on a seal.
kexuan 刻選
"Carving selection/anthology" of engravings/carvings/cuts. See also: yinpu.
keyin 刻印
Carve characters on seals, etc. Literally "[to] carve [a] seal."
kezi 刻字
"Carve characters" [on seals, etc.].
kezishe 刻字社
Seal-engraving shop.
lianzhuyin 聯珠印
Twin seals; two seals carved on the same stone. Often with one baiwen and one zhuwen.
liudao 留刀
"Reserved knife;" a seal carving technique where "the artist leaves the corners uncut and the imprinted seal may show smudged edges on the paper." (Contag & Wang, p.xxvi) [I'm not sure what's meant by this.]
liumianyin 六面印
"Six-sided seal" with four sides, bottom, and top for seal carvings.
liu-tao
See: liudao
liuyezhuan 柳葉篆
"Willow leaf zhuan" script; a style of seal script where both ends of the strokes taper to a point.
longwenxi 龍紋璽
Dragon pattern seal.
maidao 埋刀
"Buried knife." In this seal carving technique "it is difficult to say from the seal impression at what point the carver has begun cutting, for this is concealed or 'buried'. It derives from a style of calligraphy called ts'ang-feng 藏鋒 or 'buried point'. (Contag & Wang, p.xxvi) This technique would be true for a majority of seals.
mai-tao
See: maidao
miaozhuan 繆篆
Sinuous seal script. The most common script style found in Han dynasty (206 BCE-220 CE) seals. The name comes from the way strokes can be twisted or altered to fit the design [?]. "Miu-chuan 繆篆 is a seal variant of ta-chuan 大篆 inspired by inscriptions found on bronze or stone, or invented by the artist. This style first appears in the Ch'in 秦 dynasty and later, in the Han dynasty it was fully developed." (Contag & Wang, p.xxiv) Probably better transcribed as mouzhuan. See also: miu zhuan.
miu-chuan
See: miuzhuan
miuzhuan 繆篆
"Miu-chuan 繆篆 is a seal variant of ta-chuan 大篆 inspired by inscriptions found on bronze or stone, or invented by the artist. This style first appears in the Ch'in 秦 dynasty and later, in the Han dynasty it was fully developed." (Contag & Wang, p.xxiv) Probably better transcribed as mouzhuan. See also: miao zhuan.
mouzhuan 繆篆
See: miao zhuan.
muzhuji 木朱記
"Wooden vermilion seal." I'm not sure what's meant by this. See also: zhu ji.
niaochongshu 鳥蟲書
"This 'bird' and 'insect' script was used in ancient times as signals on flags and pennants, and on credentials. The corners and ends of the strokes take the shape of birds, fishes and insects." (Contag & Wang, p.xxiv) A modern Chinese artist who specializes in this script is Han Tianheng, born in 1940, as pictured here. Also called chongniaoshu.
niao-ch'ung-shu
See: niaochongshu
nifeng 泥封
"Clay sealing." See also: feng ni.
nine-fold script
See: jiu die wen
p'eng-tzu wen
See: pengziwen
pengziwen 棚子文
"P'eng-tzu wen is a style similar to the hsiao-chuan, but the vertical lines affect the shape of the upright poles of an awning." (Contag & Wang) This example is by the artist Yang Wencong who lived from 1597 to 1645.
phagspa
"The Phagspa script is an alphabet designed by the Tibetan monk Drogön Chögyal Phagpa (1235-1280) for Kublai Khan, the founder of the Yuan dynasty (1271-1368) in China. The actual use of this script was limited to about a hundred years during the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty." [Wikipedia] The seal shown is from the National Palace Museum, Taiwan.
qianji 鈐記
"Official seal."
qiedao 切刀
"Chopping/slicing cut," a seal-cutting technique.
qieyuwen 切玉文
"The Yu-chin wen [yujinwen] and T'ieh-hsien wen [tiexianwen] are scripts derived from carvings on jade and iron material, in the style of the hsiao-chuan [xiaozhuan] but with very fine lines ... If the stroke-ends are pointed it is called ch-'ieh-yu wen ..." (Contag & Wang, p.xxiv)
qishouzhang 起首章
"Colophon-head seal." See also: yin shou zhang.
relief
Also called relief carving. Often used when referring to yangwen/zhuwen seals. A western art term meaning a raised surface with the background carved out. We should stop using this term for seal carving as it confuses almost everyone. See: zhu wen.
shenbo 審勃
Jade seal with ... [?] I'm not sure of the meaning of this phrase.
shiguwen 石鼓文
"Stone drum script," used on seals and named for the ancient drum-shaped stones on which the calligraphy was engraved. Transitional between dazhuan and xiaozhuan scripts. The illustration shows one of these stone drums.
shou 綬
Silk ribbon attached to an official seal.
shoucangzhuanyongyin 收藏专用印
Collection seal; usually with the name of the art collector. Characterized only by the text and not by the style.
shoumianyinxi 獸面印璽
Animal face seal.
shuangdao 雙刀
"Double knife;" a seal-cutting technique. See: shuangrudao.
shuang-ju-tao
See: shuangrudao
shuangrudao 雙入刀
"Double entering knife;" the most common seal-cutting technique, characterized by cutting from both outside and inside toward the center of a line, resulting in (relatively) smooth edges on both sides of the line.
shujianjumingyin 書柬具名印
Correspondence name seal.
shuwen 書文
"Shu-wen is a style of writing trying to fill in the whole seal space with rounded strokes." (Contag & Wang, p.xxiv) [I'm not sure what's meant by this.]
shuzhaimingyin 書齋名印
Studio name seal; a seal with the name of an artist's studio. In this example the character on the left means "studio" as in "studio of ..." See also: zhai shi yin.
simianyin 四面印
Four-sided seal with a hole through the center. The example shown is from the Palace Museum, Beijing.
siquan 四全
The four perfections: poetry, calligraphy, painting, and seal carving.
siyin 私印
Private/personal seal following the owner's name. [Ordered by Emperor Wu.]
sizhang 私章
Personal seal; signet.
tan-ju-tao
See: danrudao
taoyin 套印
Cover-and-covered seal. [I'm not sure what's meant by this.]
tianhuangshi 田黃石
"Field Yellow Stone," a form of Shoushan stone. "This material is the most valuable variety of the so-called Tianhuang Stone. It is traded in China for very high prices." (Mindat.org) The example shown is from the Palace Museum, Beijing—they have many in their collection.
tiebi 鐵筆
"Iron brush;" the chisel used in seal carving. See also: bi dao, ke dao, yin dao.
t'ieh-hsien wen
See: tiexianwen
tiexianwen 鐵線文
"Derived from carvings on jade and iron material, in the style of the hsiao-chuan [xiaozhuan] but with very fine lines." (Contag & Wang, p.xxiv) See also: yu jin wen.
tieyin 鐵印
Iron seal/stamp. An uncommon material for seals.
[tou]yin
Oval seal. See also: chang yuan yin.
tuji 圖記
Seal, stamp.
tuoyuanyin 橢圓印
Elliptical seal, somewhat like a rectangular seal.
tuxingyin 圖形印
Graphic seal.
tuzhang 圖章
Seal, stamp.
wanpai 皖派
The Wan school of seal carving. See also: hui pai.
xi 璽
Imperial seal.
xianzhang 閑章
Leisure seal/private seal usually containing an idiom or poetic quotation.
xiaoxingyin 肖形印
Seals with animal figures; pictorial seals.
xiaozhuan 小篆
"Small seal script," as opposed to the earlier large seal script. Commonly used on seals. "The small seal script is an archaic script style of written Chinese. It developed within the state of Qin during the Eastern Zhou dynasty (771–256 BC), and was then promulgated across China in order to replace script varieties used in other ancient Chinese states following Qin's wars of unification and establishment of the Qin dynasty (221–206 BC) under Qin Shi Huang, the first emperor of China." [Wikipedia] See also: da zhuan.
Xiling School
See: zhepai
xilingbajia 西泠八家
Eight Masters of Xiling: Chen Hongshou, Chen Yuzhong, Ding Jing, Huang Yi, Jiang Ren, Qian Song, Xi Gang, and Zhao Zhichen. All active in Zhejiang province.
xilingyinshe 西泠印社
"The Xiling Seal Art Society is a Chinese arts organisation based in Hangzhou, Zhejiang Province, PRC. It was founded in 1904 but, with antecedents dating back to the Ming and Qing dynasties, is one of China's most important traditional stone seal engraving associations." [Wikipedia]
xishou 璽綬
Imperial seal and attached cord.
xiyin 璽印
Official and private seals used, up to the Qing dynasty (1644-1911), as a means of authentication. See also: gu xi yin.
xuanzhenzhuan [--]篆
Suspended needle seal script. Said to have been created by calligraphers Shi Weize and Qu Lingwen during the Tang dynasty (618-907). Sometimes used on seals, with thick verticals tapering to a point at the bottom.
yajiaozhang 押角章
Bottom corner seal/balancing corner seal [as found on a painting]; usually square.
yangwen 陽文
"Yang writing" or "positive" seal; seal with red characters on a white background. See also: zhu wen.
yin 印
Seal(s), stamp, or sometimes called in English a "chop." See also: zhang.
yinbing 印柄
Seal handle, an elongated handle on ancient bronze seals.
yincai 印材
Seal material, uncut seal stone. For more see: Seal Material.
yinchuang 印床
"Seal bed;" a vise used to hold seals while carving.
yindao 印刀
Seal knife/knives. See also: bi dao, ke dao, tie bi.
yingshouzhang 引首章
"Leading seal;" upper right-hand corner seal [as found on painting or calligraphy]; usually oblong. See also: yin shou zhang.
yingui 印規
Seal rule, used to help position a seal when stamping a work of art.
yinmian 印面
The surface of the seal (where the characters are carved). Literally: "seal face." The example shown is from the Palace Museum, Beijing.
yinni 印泥
Ink paste. See also: zhu sha.
yinnihe'r 印泥盒儿
Inkpad/container for seal ink.
yinpu 印譜
A book of seal impressions. Blank books are sold for this purpose.
yinshi 印石
Seal stone. For more see: Seal Material.
yinshouzhang 引首章
"Foremost seal;" a colophon-head seal or upper right-hand corner seal [as found on painting or calligraphy]; usually oblong. See also: qi shou zhang, ying shou zhang.
yintui 印蛻
A seal impression.
yinwen 陰文
"Yin writing" or "negative" seal; seals with white characters on a red background. See also: bai wen.
yinxia 印匣
Seal case, or a box for holding seals.
yinzhang 印章
The general term for seals.
yinzhangxue 印章學
The study of seal engraving.
yinzhu 印箸
"Seal chopstick;" a paddle used to stir the seal ink paste. Metal is discouraged as it is thought to interact with the seal ink. Antique ones are sometimes made from ivory, modern ones from bone or plastic.
yuanyayin 元押印
Seals using Mongolian characters. Popular in the Yuan dynasty (1260-1368) when the Mongols ruled China. Sometimes with both Mongolian and Chinese characters, as in this example. See also: hua ya yin.
yuanyin 圓印
Round shaped seal.
yuanzhuwen 圓朱文
Round-relief script. Thin rounded red characters on a white background. In use since the Song and Yuan dynasties (960-1368).
yu-chin wen
See: yujinwen
yujinwen 玉筋文
"Derived from carvings on jade and iron material, in the style of the hsiao-chuan [xiaozhuan] but with very fine lines." (Contag & Wang, p.xxiv) See also: tie xian wen.
yuzhuzhuan 玉箸篆
"Jade chopstick seal script." Said to have been created by calligrapher Li Yangbing during the Tang dynasty (618-907). Sometimes used on seals, with thick squared-off white characters on a dark background.
zhaishiyin 齋室印
Studio seal. See also: shu zhai ming yin.
zhang 章
Seal, stamp, chop. See also: yin.
zhangfa 章法
The art of composition in the design of seals; one of the three skills of seal carving. See also: dao fa, zhuan fa.
zhengrudao 正入刀
"Upright entering knife;" holding the seal knife vertically to the material being carved.
zhenyanyin 箴言印
Motto seal (zhenyan = maxim, precept).
zhepai 浙派
"Zhe School;" a school of seal carving founded by Ding Jing (1695-1765) during the Qing dynasty and named for the Zhejiang region where most of the members lived. Also known as the Xiling School or Zhejiang School.
zhiyingzhuan 芝英篆
"A variation of xiaozhuan with strokes with bifurcate ends." The "v" shaped ending on a stroke is the result of the double-cut technique, without squaring off the ends of the stroke.
zhuanfa 篆法
The calligraphic aspect of seal design; seal character writing technique; one of the three skills of seal carving along with zhangfa and daofa. See also: dao fa, zhang fa.
zhuanke 篆刻
Seal carving/engraving.
zhuankejia 篆刻家
A person who carves seals.
zhubaiwenxiangjianyin 朱白文相間印
A seal with both red and white characters.
zhuji 朱記
Official seal.
zhusha 朱砂
Cinnabar paste for seal imprints; seal ink. See also: yin ni.
zhuwen 朱文
"Red writing;" a seal with red characters on a white background. See also: yang wen.
zimuyin 子母印
"Mother and child seal" with one or more small seals nested inside a larger one. This example has several tortoise stacked one on top of another, each with its own seal.