What is the significance of engraving on traditional tombstones?

First, the text is exquisite. Traditional tombstones have strict text requirements. China is a multi-language country, mainly divided into simplified and traditional characters, as well as some minority languages, Manchu, Tibetan, Uyghur and so on. Simplified and traditional Chinese characters are commonly used in traditional tombstones. The content expressed by the two is different, but the form of the characters is different. Simplified characters are clear and crisp, while traditional Chinese characters are complex and powerful.

2. Sophisticated fonts. Tombstones have been integrated with the stone tablet culture since ancient times. Most of the stone tablets in China are Wei tablet, official script, regular script, running script, and cursive script. Traditional tombstones also follow this rule. The running script and cursive script are too elegant, and some characters are very It is difficult for people to see clearly, loses the function of the tombstone itself, and is gradually abandoned. Weibei is mostly used to write epitaphs, official script and regular script have become common fonts in the text of tombstones, modern carving skills are prosperous, and the slender Song Dynasty and imitation Song Dynasty are also mixed. Inscribed on the date of the tombstone.

3. The depth of the lettering. In the traditional tombstone culture, the deeper the tombstone lettering is, the better. The depth determines the clarity and plane effect of the tombstone text. In terms of emotion, the depth of the tombstone text also implies deep feelings. , The text leaves a deep imprint on the tombstone. Every stroke seems to record a person's long life, and it also expresses the unforgettable pain. However, modern people's understanding of the depth of lettering has changed. If the text is processed too deeply, it will only make the text appear cracked, which is not beautiful. Therefore, the depth of the text has a lot to do with the fullness of the text. If the font effect is deepened within a reasonable range, it can create a round and full vision. Therefore, the depth of the tombstone text generally does not exceed 2 cm.

4. Elaborate lettering techniques. There are 3 common techniques, which are listed below:

Engraving by hand, the ancients used carving knives, and modern people used electric carving machines, all of which are hand-carved. The advantages of carving characters in this way are very obvious: each font has its own characteristics, and there is no mechanical stagnation, but there are also defects. : There will be a situation where the text is not aligned and the size is not good or bad.

Sandblasting machine lettering, the vast majority of modern tombstones use this method. After the emery impacts the surface of the tablet, the text is formed. This processing method has a flat font, strong visual sense, simple process and convenient processing.

Engraving machine engraving, automatic engraving machine can also be used to process inscriptions, and can set accurate text depth and text internal structure outline, completely customized, but the defect is that the mechanical carving marks are too heavy, and the text is old-fashioned and abrupt.

5. The size of the lettering is exquisite. There are no strict rules for the size and size of the lettering, but it needs to be measured with a dinglan ruler. The dinglan ruler is a necessary measuring tool for building a house, with a length of 38.78 cm, and the scale is divided into ten The scale is divided into "wealth, loss, prosperity, death, official, righteousness, bitterness, prosperity, harm, and Ding". Among them, "wealth, prosperity, official, righteousness, prosperity, and Ding" are auspicious, and "lost, death, suffering," "Harm" is bad, when using the Ding Lan ruler, you don't need to measure the height and width of each character, you only need to measure the length of the vertical and horizontal sides, from the beginning of the character to the end of the character, if the length corresponding to the scale is good, you can. Obsessive-compulsive disorder, can measure the height and width of each word, so that its size corresponds to the scale of Ding Lan's ruler.

6. Elaborate blank space. One inch of the tombstone is reserved for the heaven and the earth. When writing the tombstone, one inch of space is left on the top, bottom, left and right for the purpose of blank space. In other parts, the blank space needs to be determined according to different conditions. White location.

7. The color of the font is exquisite. The color of the tombstone text is generally red, gold, black and white. Among them, red is used for the joint burial in the north, and one party is not mourned, but the name is engraved on the tombstone, and the red name is written first. There are many red inscriptions in the south. For soldiers, martyrs, and patriots, it expresses a patriotic feeling that I recommend Xuanyuan with my blood. Gold was the color of emperors in ancient times, representing dignity and wealth, and modern people like this color. Black and white are traditional rural tombstones The color of the text is not very elegant, black and white is only for the convenience of identifying the text, for example, the white tablet is matched with black characters, and the black tablet is matched with white characters, expressing nostalgia and mourning.

8. The form of the text is exquisite. In addition to simple lettering, modern people also pay attention to the beauty of the form of the text. Among them, relief, sinking and inlay are more common:

Embossed text, this type of text has a request for the appearance of the tombstone, and the text protrudes beyond the surface of the tombstone, showing a flat text effect.

Shen carved characters, the above-mentioned lettering with a depth of 2 cm is deep carving. Here we talk about shallow deep carving, simply process the text with shallow lines, the depth is about 1-2 mm, and the fonts are mostly black and official script.

Inlaid characters, dig holes for the characters on the tombstone, and then process the same flat characters (and the tombstone's appearance is a different color stone) through water jet processing, and embed these characters in the center of the digging holes. Such tombstones are smooth and flat, but The text is displayed very clearly, and the advantage of this approach is that you don't have to worry about re-coloring the inscription in the future.

9. The arrangement is exquisite. The traditional tombstone format has a strong request. The center is the text, the left side (facing the right side of the tombstone) is the date of birth and death, and the right side is the person who erected the tombstone and the time of the monument (in the lower right corner) .And the epitaph text can be engraved behind the tombstone, or another stone tablet can be erected next to it.