
Name Seal
The most common seal is a name seal, and the most common name seal contains both first and last names.
The most common seal is a name seal, and the most common name seal contains both first and last names.
A seal from two thousand years ago certainly tells a story, we just don’t know what it is.
If you have both a first and a last name seal the one with your family name will usually go under the signature.
The Chinese say that “more is not as good as less and less is not as good as good.”
Artist’s often struggle over where to place their seals on their artwork. One of the best ways to learn is by looking at the old masters.
Probably the most common question from beginning artists is where to put a seal on their art.
The Chinese word yinni 印泥 can be translated into English as seal ink, ink paste, or seal paste.
The red color of seal ink comes from the mineral cinnabar, which is then made into the color known as vermillion—and it’s poisonous.
Most seals have the name of the artist and are used along with a signature or in place of one, but seals can also include favorite phrases, poems, religious texts, pictures, or any combination of these.
If you sand down your seal stone for any reason don’t use too fine a grit of sandpaper.
Unless you’re working on a very hard stone I suggest you wrap your seal stone in a bit of cloth, tissue, or soft leather before you clamp it into your seal vise.
Although usually translated into English as a seal ruler (印規 yingui) this tool has nothing to do with taking measurements.