Seals have two general uses : one is for identification, the equivalent of a personal signature or guarantee ; the other, while it often identifies, is almost purely ornamental and has no legal significance whatever. The identification seal must bear the using (At) or family name of its owner, and the ming which is the equivalent of our Christian name. It must be understood that the Chinese use several varieties of individual names, so that when we translate the hao (V) or intimate name as nick name, we are incorrect, nickname being properly the translation of what the Chinese call wai-hao (AV) ,which is very rarely if ever used on seals. The hao is an intimate name often selected by the bearer himself or given to him by his friends as being appropriate to his pursuits or character. The Chinese also use an other intimate name, the tzu () (sometimes absurdly and mean inglessly translated as "style") which is created in much the same manner as the hao, except that it properly carries some direct literary allusion to the ming, and is in its use somewhat more ele gant and formal than the hao. On ornamental seals the hao or tilt may be used with or without the hsing, but in practice usually without. The ming may be employed on ornamental seals without the hsing. A painter is much more likely to sign his hao or tzu and stamp his ornamental seal or seals underneath his signature than he is to use his full legal name and seals.
It is very difficult to generalize about Chinese seals because of the frequent departures that Chinese writers and artists in dulge in, especially with their ornamental seals. An artist may have as many as, say, 5o to Ion seals, bearing his ming, tzu, hao or 7.ai-hao, the name of his studio, the name of his native dis trict with his family name, etc. These different names, with such characters as yin (pp), clzang (*), chili yin (tg(J, seal of), etc., present an almost inexhaustible possibility for variations. Sometimes the identical inscriptions are duplicated or tripli cated in different styles of writing. Saito Ken's Signatures and Seals of Chinese Artists (Ag ItSAppirt Shina Kwaka Rak kwan Infu, Tokyo, 19061, gives reproductions of 3S seals used by Tung Ch'i-ch'ang CIA El), an artist of the Ming dynasty, and these do not purport to be exhaustive. As well as personal and official seals, there are countless seals bearing the names of temples, public offices, palace halls, personal libraries, manu factories, shops, family seals, and even, on occasion, small houses.
The materials of which seals are made are as varied as the seals themselves. Practically any hard, fine-grained stone may be used, with the semi-precious stones preferred. Metals are used also, most commonly bronze but, on occasion, gold and silver, either solid or plated. The cheapest and most common materials in general business and private use are wood and soapstone, the latter often as beautifully carved as the rarest jade.
The type of character most used is the chuan ), which we translate as "seal character," but there is great latitude in the arrangement and period of the characters employed, archaic and historic forms being very popular. Flourishes, embellishments and variations are often indulged in (in spite of the fact that the practice is frowned upon by writers on the subject), making it exceedingly difficult to read or decipher the inscriptions. See Hstieh Ku Pien (Ttig), Studies in Antiquities, a work on seals written by Wu Chi-ch'eng of the Yidan dynasty, quoted in the Ku Chin T'u Shu Chi Ch'eng IzA), the K'ang Hsi cyclopaedia. The lines of the characters may be raised or de pressed, giving, in the first instance, vermilion lines against a white background, and in the second, white lines against a ver milion background. The first are variously known as yang wen
gal() or "male" writing, and chu wen () or vermilion writ ing; the second as yin wen (WIC or "female" writing, and pai win (nz or white writing. In describing seals, writers in variably mention which of these two styles is used. Seals usually have only one inscription, but early seals, usually made of brass, with inscriptions on both ends or on all six sides, were not uncommon.
There are references to seals in the Four Books (MI) and Five Classics (ag). The Clii Chia Chou Shu (ate ) (history of the Chou dynasty unearthed in the 4th century A.D. at Chi, quoted in the K'ang Hsi Encyclopaedia) tells us that when Tang (A), the founder of the Shang dynasty (1767-1122 B.C.) deposed Chieh (g), the last of the Hsia (2205-1767 B.c.) emperors, and convened the feudal princes, he placed the imperial seal at the seat of the emperor. The first report of the use of seals in what we would call authenticated history is in the Tso Chuan (WS, the commentaries of Tso-ch'iu Ming, on Spring and Autumn Annals, 4# of Confucius, quoted in the K'ang Hsi Encyclopae dia) which tells us : "In the 29th year of Duke Hsiang of Lu 544 B.c.) the Duke was at Ch'u () for the funeral of Prince K'ang (*T). When he was at Fang Ch'eng .1;') Chi Wu Tzil the minister of Lu) took possession of Pien (A) and sent Kung Yeh (IF& with a sealed document (hsi shu, 1*) to report the matter to Duke Hsiang." We must not infer, however, that this was the beginning of the use of seals, for if it was, the philosopher Chuang Chou (Fgj, 4th to 3rd cen tury B.c.) would not have attacked its vogue, declaring that men would return to simplicity and virtue if "tallies were burned and seals destroyed." In fact, it is safe to assume from this pronouncement of Chuang Chou that seals were in general use centuries before his time, probably throughout the Chou dynasty (1122-256 B.C.).
From then on the use and classification of seals became exceed ingly complicated. In general seals may be classified as yin and hsi (M). The latter character has come to be applied to the seals of the emperor and other important members of the im perial family, such as the empress, the crown prince and ex emperors ; and the former to seals of officials and private indi viduals, though in ancient times, as late as the Han dynasty, the two characters were used synonymously. It must be observed, however, that during the Han dynasty the distinction began to apply.
In the Han Chiu I ( , a work on the organization of the governmental machinery by Wei Hung of theHan dynasty) the following regulations were provided for the use of seals : (r) Seals of feudal princes, chu hou wing ART), are to be known as hsi O, to be made of yellow gold with camel knob or handle. (2) Seals of nobles, lick hou (NR), are to be known as yin (jJ) and are to be made of yellow gold with tortoise knobs. (3) Seals of ministers or generals are to be known as chang (V), to be made of gold with tortoise knobs. (4) Seals of officials with a pension of 2,000 piculs of grain or more are to be known as chang, to be made of silver with tortoise knobs. (5) Seals of officials with pensions from 40o to I.000 piculs of grain are to be known as yin, to be made of brass with nose (pi, A) knobs.
At the present day such regulations if they exist at all are completely disregarded by the average Chinese, who uses any form he chooses on his personal seals even to representations of landscape. The broadest classification is perhaps the one followed by the Clii Ku Yin P'u (ttppa, Collection of Ancient Seals by Wang Chang T-g, 1575) which divides all seals into two main