Harvard Library’s Chinese Rubbings Collection: https://library.harvard.edu/collections/chinese-rubbings-collection
Did you know that Harvard Library’s Fine Arts Library has a Chinese Rubbings Collection from the Qin Dynasty (221–207 BCE) to the Ming Dynasty 1368–1644 CE)? It’s just unbelievable that we have access to such a collection online. According to the website, “the rubbings were made from ancient stone stelae, tomb tablets, and Buddhist and Daoist scriptures on stelae and rocks, as well as from inscriptions and designs from bronze vessels, jade objects, ceramics, tomb bricks, and roof tiles.” These rubbings provide such an amazing resource into China’s history. Imagine viewing what was etched at a Buddhist site over a thousand years ago!
]This site is worth exploring. The left navigation bar allows for narrowing searches to the following:
- Creators/contributors
- Creation Date
- Genre
- Culture
- Style Period
- Materials/Techniques
- Subjects
- Places
- Digital Format
- Repository
The site is easy to use and very organized. I looked at subjects and saw that there are 505 calligraphy rubbings. Enjoy!
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