Category Archives: epigraphy

Grid lines in medieval Chinese scrolls: Functionality or design?

Posted on 02/09/2012 by imre

Medieval manuscript scrolls are often ruled with grid lines to guide the hand of the calligrapher. These lines are a basic feature of most standard Buddhist and Taoist scrolls, which typically have 17 characters per line and 27-28 (or 31) … Continue reading →

Posted in archaeology, Chinese writing, Dunhuang, epigraphy, Palaeography, Scribal habits | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Reversed inscriptions: Chinese writing going from left to right

Posted on 06/21/2011 by imre

I have come across an inscription which is read in reversed order, that is, from left to right. This is a famous inscription called Mogaoku ji (Record of the Mogao Caves) on the wall of the antechamber of Cave 156 … Continue reading →

Posted in archaeology, Chinese writing, Dunhuang, epigraphy, Palaeography, published papers | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Manuscript copies of stone inscriptions

Posted on 06/21/2011 by imre

Putting some of my older publications online: Manuscript copies of stone inscriptions in the Dunhuang corpus: Issues of dating and provenance (Imre Galambos) Asiatische Studien/Études Asiatiques LXIII, 4, 2009: 809-826. Abstract Modern observers tend to simplify the complex process of … Continue reading →

Posted in Chinese writing, Dating, Dunhuang, epigraphy, Orthography, Palaeography, published papers | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Scribal Notation in Medieval Chinese Manuscripts

Posted on 06/21/2011 by imre

Putting some of my older publications online: Scribal Notation in Medieval Chinese Manuscripts: The hewen (Ligature) and the chongwen (Duplication) Marks (by Imre Galambos) Manuscript Cultures (2010), No. 2. Early Chinese manuscripts and inscriptions often make use of two devices … Continue reading →

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Unattested character variant

Posted on 01/04/2011 by imre

Last May, Sam and I went on a trip to Gansu and Qinghai provinces to visit the sites along a medieval pilgrimage route. (On this trip, see Sam’s entry on his blog: Amdo Notes II.) I got to Lanzhou first … Continue reading →

Posted in 20th century, Character variants, Chinese writing, Dunhuang, epigraphy, Orthography | Tagged , | 3 Comments

Impossible dates in manuscripts

Posted on 10/01/2010 by imre

Every now and then we come across impossible dates in Chinese manuscripts and inscriptions, which refer to years in reign periods that never existed. The common explanation for these is that the place where the manuscript was written was remote … Continue reading →

Posted in archaeology, Dating, Dunhuang, epigraphy, History of scholarship, Palaeography | Tagged , , | Leave a comment