Epitaph for My Nanny 保母帖
Item
Title
Epitaph for My Nanny 保母帖
Description
(none)
Source
https://asia.si.edu/object/F1980.7
Creator
Unidentified artist
annotates
Fastening pin: Imperial workshop, mid-18th century
Dark-green jade. Outside carved with archaic design; inside carved with title and
signature, enhanced with gold pigment
Ten characters, clerical script.
乾隆御題：王獻之《保母帖》
Epitaph for My Nanny, by Wang Xianzhi. Inscribed by the Qianlong emperor.
Outside label slip: (1) – unidentified
Ink on paper.
Seven characters, standard script
晉王獻之《保母帖》
Epitaph for My Nanny, by Wang Xianzhi of the Jin dynasty
Rubbing text: (1) – attributed to Wang Xianzhi 王獻之 (344–388)
Ink on paper. Separately mounted.
10 columns, running-standard script.
郎邪王獻之保母，姓李，名意如，廣漢人也。在母家志行高秀，歸王氏柔順恭懃。屬文能
草書，解釋老旨趣。年七十，興寧三年歲在乙丑二月六日，無疾而終。□□□□□□□□ □□□□
岡下，殉以曲水小硯、交螭方壺，樹雙柏於墓上，立貞石而志之。悲夫！後八百餘載，知
獻之保母宮于茲土者，尚□□焉！
The nanny of Wang Xianzhi of Langya had the surname Li, the given name Yiru, and was a
native of Guanghan. While still at her home, she was lofty and cultivated in both mind and deed,
and when she came to the Wang family, she was compliant, obedient, respectful, and diligent.
She was skilled at prose composition, able to write in cursive script, and could explicate the
meaning of Buddhist and Daoist texts. At the age of seventy, during the third year of Xingning
when the year-star was in yichou, on the sixth day of the second lunar-month [March 14, 365],
she passed away without illness, and [on the day after the full moon in the jimao month (March
24) was laid to rest] below [Huangfang] Ridge [in Shanyin, Guiji county].1 She was buried with
a small inkstone having a meandering stream [design], and a square bronze vase with
intertwining dragons. Two cypresses were planted at her grave and a memorial stone was erected
in her honor. Alas, how sad! But eight hundred years hence and more, it shall still be known that
Xianzhi's nanny lies interred in this ground.
Signature: none
Date: 興寧三年歲在乙丑二月六日
Sixth day of the second lunar-month in the third year of the Xingning
reign period, when the year-star was in yichou [March 14, 365] (date of Li
Yiru’s death)
Seals: none
Colophons: (7) – Seven sheets of paper in five separately mounted sections. Paper of each
section different in size and paper quality. Colophons mounted out of sequence. Total: 4
collector seals. Total dimensions: 29 x 95.5 cm (11-1/2 x 76-7/8 in)
Section One: Colophons 1 and 2 on two joined sheets of pale, aged brownish paper, dirty; two
pieces of same-type paper joined in middle, with separate colophons on either side. Three (3)
collectors seals over paper join.
Section Two: Colophons 3 and 4 on two joined sheets of brownish paper, each with one
colophon; different paper texture than previous section; diagonal "shadow" in upper right (as
from a fold); ca. four inches between two colophons, with paper join between. One (1) collector
seal, with Colophon 4.
Section Three: Colophon 5 on one sheet of aged, brownish, brittle paper, different texture than
either section before; many abrasions; paper join toward left side.
Section Four: Colophon 6 on one sheet of brownish paper, different texture and consistency from
other sections; ink tonalities generally pale.
Section Five: Colophon 7 on one sheet of cream color paper; much unused space to left.
.
1. Xu Shouhe 徐守和 (1574–after 1646) – see also colophon 7, below
Ink on paper. Separately mounted section 1 (two joined sheets), right side.
7 columns, standard script. Transcription of Baomu tie
晉王大令《保母帖》釋文
郎邪王獻之保母，姓李，名意如，廣漢人也。在母家志行高秀，歸王氏柔順恭懃。屬文能
草書，解釋老旨趣。年七十，興寧三年歲在乙丑二月六日，無疾而[卒 2
] 終。己卯既望葬焉
，柩出□□□□岡下，殉以曲水小硯、交螭方壺，樹雙柏於墓上，立貞石而志之。悲
夫！後八百餘載，知獻之保母宮于茲土者，尚[可考]焉！
崇禎八年乙亥季春廿八日，朗白徐守和書。
Transcription of The Epitaph for My Nanny, by the Grand Minister Wang [Xianzhi].3 [Text
translated above. Note differences in Chinese transcription of damaged column 6]. Twentyeighth
day of the last spring month in the yihai year of the Chongzhen reign period [May 14, 1635],
written by Langbai Xu Shouhe.
Signature: 朗白徐守和
Langbai Xu Shouhe
Date: 崇禎八年乙亥季春廿八日
Twenty-eighth day of the last spring month in the yihai year of the
Chongzhen reign period [May 14, 1635]
Seals: none
2. Hongli 弘曆, the Qianlong 乾隆 emperor (1711–1799; reigned 1735–95)
Ink on paper. Separately mounted section 1 (two joined sheets), left side.
8 columns running script.
保母墓甎，至宋寧宗嘉泰癸亥，始見於世。其文有『八百餘載』之語，若前知者。周必大
《平園集》中，亦嘗及之，要知名蹟流傳有數，固無足怪。董香光摹入《戲鴻堂帖》中，
臨池家遂人有其書，而初搨絕少。今乃得之，正香光藏本，謂是晉搨，縱未必然，其為大
令親書於甎，晉人所刻，固無可疑。宋潛溪以《蘭亭》，乃唐人鉤摹入石。此固當勝一語
，足為定論，姜堯章辨證轉辭費耳。乾隆庚午小除夕，秉燭御識。
It was not until the guihai year in the Jiatai reign period of Emperor Ningzong of the Song
dynasty [1203] that the tomb brick [bearing the Epitaph for] My Nanny first appeared in the
world. Its text has the seemingly prescient phrase ―eight hundred years and more,‖ which Zhou
Bida [1126–1204] also mentions once in his Collected Works of Flat Garden.
4 But as we all
know, there is a destiny to the handing down of famous works, so there is certainly nothing to
wonder about [in this]. Dong Xiangguang [Dong Qichang, 1555–1636] copied [the rubbing] into
his Xihongtang tie [Manuscripts from the Hall of the Playful Goose], but although later followers
of the calligrapher know the writing, original rubbings [from the actual brick] are exceptionally
rare. 5 Now We have acquired this [rubbing], which is precisely the version collected by
Xiangguang [see colophon 4], and although it may not actually be a rubbing from the Jin dynasty
as he says, it certainly cannot be doubted that the Grand Minister [Wang Xianzhi] personally
wrote on the brick, which then was carved by a Jin contemporary. Song Qianqi [Song Lian,
1310–1381] believed the Lanting [Orchid Pavilion] carved into stone was a tracing copy [of the
original] made during the Tang dynasty. This is certainly a winning argument and should be
taken as settled opinion, so all the analysis [to the contrary] by Jiang Yaozhang [Jiang Kui, ca.
1155–ca. 1221] turns out to be simply a big waste of words.6 Inscribed by the Emperor with
candle in hand on the evening before New Year's Eve in the gengwu year of the Qianlong reign
period [January 25, 1751].7
Signature: 御
the Emperor
Date: 乾隆庚午小除夕
evening before New Year's Eve in the gengwu year of the Qianlong reign
period [January 25, 1751]
Seals: (1)
Qianlong『乾』『隆』(linked circle-square relief)
3. Zhao Mengfu 趙孟頫 (1254–1322)
Ink on paper. Separately mounted section 2 (two joined sheets), right side.
7 columns, running script.
吾舊藏此《保母帖》，郭右之從吾求，乃輟以與之，不意十五年後重見之也。《保母帖》
雖晚出，然是大令無恙時所刻，與世所傳臨摹上石者萬萬也。至大二年七月廿日為范喬年
題，子昂。
I previously owned this [copy of] the Epitaph for My Nanny, but Guo Youzhi [Guo Tianxi, see
colophon 5] kept after me asking for it, until I finally gave it to him to stop, and never thought
I’d see it again fifteen years later. Although the Epitaph for My Nanny was discovered quite late,
nevertheless it was carved while the Grand Minister [Wang Xianzhi] was healthy [and alive], and
is worth a million of those [other works] passed down in the world that were copied onto stone.
Inscribed for Fan Qiaonian [unidentified] on the twentieth day of the seventh lunar-month in the
second year of the Zhida reign period [August 25, 1309], Zi’ang.8
Signature: 子昂
Zi’ang
Date: 至大二年七月廿日
Twentieth day of the seventh lunar month in the second year of the Zhida
reign period [August 25, 1309]
Seals: (2)
Zhao shi Zi’ang『趙氏子昂』(square relief)
Songxuezhai『松雪齋』(rectangle relief)
4. Dong Qichang 董其昌 (1555–1636)
Ink on paper. Separately mounted section 2 (two joined sheets), left side.
8 columns running script.
書家得宋搨已為罕見，況唐搨乎！又誰知有晉搨如《保[寶]
9母帖》？是王子敬刻八百年而
再出，又六百年而落吾手。宋時聚訟《定武禊帖》者，似多事矣。癸酉十月朔頒曆日得之菜市
口秦人。甲戌九月望後二日題，其昌。
It is already quite rare for a calligrapher to acquire a rubbing done in the Song dynasty, and how
much more so, a rubbing from the Tang! So who knew that a rubbing from the Jin dynasty, such
as the Epitaph for My Nanny, might even exist? It reappeared eight hundred years after Wang
Zijing [Wang Xianzhi] carved it, and after another six hundred years, fell into my hands. [It
makes] all that disputation during the Song dynasty about the Dingwu Purification Text seem
like just a lot of bother!10
I acquired this from a ―Qin fellow‖ at the entrance to the vegetable market on Publishing the Calendar Day, the first
day of the tenth lunar-month in the guichou year [November 2, 1633]. Inscribed on the second day after the full
11 moon in the ninth lunar-month of the jiaxu year [November 7, 1634], [Dong] Qichang.
Signature: 其昌
Qichang
Date: 甲戌九月望後二日
On the second day after the full moon in the ninth lunar-month of the jiaxu
year [November 7, 1634]
Seals: (2)
Qinggong taibao『青宮太保』(square intaglio)
Dong Qichang yin『董其昌印』(square intaglio)
5. Guo Tianxi 郭天錫 (ca. 1235–ca.1302) – see also Collector Seals 1, below.
Ink on paper. Section 3, separately mounted.
11 columns, standard script.
右晉太宰中書令王献之字子敬書《保母帖》。至元已丑九月獲于趙兵部。子昂及來杭，與
別本較之，大不同。然未易與口舌爭，深曉王氏書者，迺能知之。予愛帖中『氏』字、『
於』字、『石』字、『于』字，臨學三年，無一字似者，古人真難到耶？壬辰長至日，
易跋。
蘭亭貴重玉石刻，云是率更脫真蹟，至今真贗乱紛紜，爭佀王書親入石，八百餘年保母辞
，献之筆法似羲之，斷碑剝落百餘字，高作歐顏千世師。
金城郭天錫審定秘玩。
At right is the Epitaph for My Nanny written by the Jin dynasty Grand Preceptor and Minister of
the Secretariat, Wang Xianzhi, who had the courtesy name Zijing. In the ninth lunar-month of
the jichou year in the Zhiyuan reign period [September 16–October 15, 1289], I received it from
Zhao [Mengfu, 1254–1322], [vice minister] in the Ministry of War. When Zi’ang [Zhao Mengfu]
arrived in Hang[zhou] and compared it with other versions [of the rubbing], [he found that] it
was very different. But while I am not much given to oral disputation, anyone who has a
profound understanding of Wang’s calligraphy will be able to know it [is genuine]. In the text, I
love the characters shi [family], yu [at], shi [stone], and yu [in], and I have copied and practiced
them for three years without getting a single one to look quite right. So truly impossible, is it not,
to achieve [the level of] the ancients! On the day of the summer solstice in the renchen year
[June 14, 1292], colophon by Xi.12
When he cut the precious Orchid Pavilion into stone,
It is said that Shuaigeng lost much of the original.13
Until today, real and fake are tangled in confusion,
So I strive to copy what Wang himself put on stone.
In his nanny’s epitaph from eight hundred years ago,
The calligraphy of Xianzhi looks like that of Xizhi.
By the hundred damaged words upon this broken tablet,
Above both Ou and Yan, he is the master for all time.14
Personal treasure, examined and authenticated by Guo Tianxi of Jincheng.15
Signature: 郭天錫
Guo Tianxi
Date: 壬辰長至日
on the day of the summer solstice in the renchen year [June 14, 1292]
Seals: (4)
Tianxi『天錫』(square intaglio)
Jincheng Guo shi『金城郭氏』(square relief)
Kuaixuezhai『快雪齋』(rectangle relief)
Beishan zhenwan『北山珍玩』(square intaglio)
6. Chen Conglong 陳從龍 (active mid-14th century)
Ink on paper. Section 4, separately mounted.
12 columns, running-standard script.
晉王羲之書法入神，一傳至獻之而筆法似之，豈一家授受有專門之祕？不然，何千載而下
，竟無有能似之者？國朝以來，惟吳興趙子昂學古書法，多蓄周、秦、漢、晉篆、隸、真
、草碑刻。以善書名當時，其博古所得者多矣。至其書又自成一家。獻之《保母帖》書法
之精，真本似此不可多得矣。由興寧幽壙所藏，而其誌已知其後八百載復出。今是帖自子
昂四傳而至豫章龔本立。古物去留，固自有數。獻之誌壙而卜年顯晦如期，豈書法之神而
數亦神耶？至正十七年六月廿日，長沙陳從龍題《保母帖》後。
The calligraphy of Wang Xizhi [ca. 303–ca. 361] of the Jin dynasty entered the divine. As he
transmitted it all to Xianzhi, whose brushwork was just like his, could there have been some
special secret [of the art] that was transmitted hand to hand within the family? If not, then why
has there been no one over the past thousand years who is able to be like them? Since the advent
of the [Yuan] dynasty, only Zhao Zi’ang [Zhao Mengfu, 1254–1322] of Wuxing studied ancient
[styles of] calligraphy, and assembled many [rubbings] of stele engravings from the Zhou, Qin,
Han, and Jin dynasties [carved in] seal, clerical, standard, and cursive script. That he became
famous in his time for good calligraphy owed much indeed to the broad knowledge he had
acquired of antiquity, and in his own calligraphy, he developed a unique personal style. [Wang]
Xianzhi’s Epitaph for My Nanny is the quintessence of calligraphy, and genuine versions such as
this cannot often be found. From the Xingning reign period [363–66] it lay concealed in a dark
grave, yet its text already foretold that it would re-emerge eight hundred years later. Starting
from Zi’ang [Zhao Mengfu], this rubbing has now changed hands four times until coming to
Gong Benli [unidentified] of Yuzhang. Whether an ancient object disappears or survives, each
certainly has its own destiny. Xianzhi composed a tomb record and predicted the appointed times
of its appearance and disappearance, so could it be that this god of calligraphy was also the god
of destiny? On the twentieth day of the sixth lunar month in the seventeenth year of the Zhizheng
reign period [July 7, 1357], inscribed by Chen Conglong of Changsha following the Epitaph for
My Nanny.
Signature: 陳從龍
Chen Conglong
Date: 至正十七年六月廿日
Twentieth day of the sixth lunar month in the seventeenth year of the
Zhizheng reign period [July 7, 1357]
Seals: none
7. Xu Shouhe 徐守和 (1574–after 1646) – see also colophon 1, above Ink on
paper. Section 5, separately mounted.
15 columns, standard script. Poem (8x7), plus prose postscript.
和郭佑之《保母帖》贊
書家何以重手刻，古墨蟲消別留蹟，禊帖聚訟吾猶人，定武浪傳五字石，曹娥當墮預占辭
，保母應出期合之，鑿鑿殘碑百廿字，底須蕭翼賺才師。
蔡中郎題《曹娥碑》云，『三百年後，碑冢當墮江中』。茲《保母志》云，『八百年後，
知獻之保母宮于茲土』。豈神物之顯晦，亦有數存乎其間哉！此磚刻相傳出自大令手，不
得而知，至於藏鋒斂鍔，大有漢魏篆籀風格。夜闇手摸，猶知其高出《定武》一層也。文
亦古澹佳絕。由趙松雪傳流至今，收藏者代不一家，皆當時名墨，豈易得也耶？崇禎甲戌
仲冬哉生，明燈下，清賞識此，小清閟主人徐守和。
―Encomium to harmonize with Guo Youzhi’s [poem] on the Epitaph for My Nanny”
[Poem not translated].
The text of the Grave Stele for Cao E, by Inner Gentleman [of the Left] Cai [Yong, 133–192],
says, ―after three hundred years the stele and grave mound shall collapse into the river.‖ And
here the Record of My Nanny says, ―eight hundred years hence and more, it shall still be known
that
Xianzhi's nanny lies interred in this ground.‖ Oh, how the appearance or disappearance of a
divine object is [governed by] the destiny that lies within it! While we cannot know if the carved
text that has been passed down originated from the Grand Minister’s hand, [the way its writing]
―conceals the point and hides the edge‖ is very much in the style of seal script [practiced] during
the Han [bce 206–220 ce] and Wei [220–265] dynasties. Just touching it in the darkness of night,
I know that it is one level up from the [calligraphy of] the Dingwu [version of the Orchid
Pavilion]. The literary text also has an antique simplicity and is exceptionally beautiful. Passing
from Zhao Songxue [Zhao Mengfu, 1254–1322] down to the present, every collector without
exception was in his time a famous [master of] ink. How could [such a thing] be easy to obtain?
On the zaisheng [third] day of the mid-winter [month] in the jiaxu year of the Chongzhen reign
period [December 22, 1634],16 Xiaoqingbi zhuren Xu Shouhe inscribed this by lamplight with
pure appreciation.
Signature: 小清閟主人徐守和
Xiaoqingbi zhuren Xu Shouhe
Date: 崇禎甲戌仲冬哉生
On the zaisheng [third] day of the mid-winter [month] in the jiaxu year of
the Chongzhen reign period [December 22, 1634, or January 4, 1635]
Seals: (2):
Xu Shouhe yin『徐守和印』(square relief)
Langbai shi『朗白氏』(square intaglio)
Dark-green jade. Outside carved with archaic design; inside carved with title and
signature, enhanced with gold pigment
Ten characters, clerical script.
乾隆御題：王獻之《保母帖》
Epitaph for My Nanny, by Wang Xianzhi. Inscribed by the Qianlong emperor.
Outside label slip: (1) – unidentified
Ink on paper.
Seven characters, standard script
晉王獻之《保母帖》
Epitaph for My Nanny, by Wang Xianzhi of the Jin dynasty
Rubbing text: (1) – attributed to Wang Xianzhi 王獻之 (344–388)
Ink on paper. Separately mounted.
10 columns, running-standard script.
郎邪王獻之保母，姓李，名意如，廣漢人也。在母家志行高秀，歸王氏柔順恭懃。屬文能
草書，解釋老旨趣。年七十，興寧三年歲在乙丑二月六日，無疾而終。□□□□□□□□ □□□□
岡下，殉以曲水小硯、交螭方壺，樹雙柏於墓上，立貞石而志之。悲夫！後八百餘載，知
獻之保母宮于茲土者，尚□□焉！
The nanny of Wang Xianzhi of Langya had the surname Li, the given name Yiru, and was a
native of Guanghan. While still at her home, she was lofty and cultivated in both mind and deed,
and when she came to the Wang family, she was compliant, obedient, respectful, and diligent.
She was skilled at prose composition, able to write in cursive script, and could explicate the
meaning of Buddhist and Daoist texts. At the age of seventy, during the third year of Xingning
when the year-star was in yichou, on the sixth day of the second lunar-month [March 14, 365],
she passed away without illness, and [on the day after the full moon in the jimao month (March
24) was laid to rest] below [Huangfang] Ridge [in Shanyin, Guiji county].1 She was buried with
a small inkstone having a meandering stream [design], and a square bronze vase with
intertwining dragons. Two cypresses were planted at her grave and a memorial stone was erected
in her honor. Alas, how sad! But eight hundred years hence and more, it shall still be known that
Xianzhi's nanny lies interred in this ground.
Signature: none
Date: 興寧三年歲在乙丑二月六日
Sixth day of the second lunar-month in the third year of the Xingning
reign period, when the year-star was in yichou [March 14, 365] (date of Li
Yiru’s death)
Seals: none
Colophons: (7) – Seven sheets of paper in five separately mounted sections. Paper of each
section different in size and paper quality. Colophons mounted out of sequence. Total: 4
collector seals. Total dimensions: 29 x 95.5 cm (11-1/2 x 76-7/8 in)
Section One: Colophons 1 and 2 on two joined sheets of pale, aged brownish paper, dirty; two
pieces of same-type paper joined in middle, with separate colophons on either side. Three (3)
collectors seals over paper join.
Section Two: Colophons 3 and 4 on two joined sheets of brownish paper, each with one
colophon; different paper texture than previous section; diagonal "shadow" in upper right (as
from a fold); ca. four inches between two colophons, with paper join between. One (1) collector
seal, with Colophon 4.
Section Three: Colophon 5 on one sheet of aged, brownish, brittle paper, different texture than
either section before; many abrasions; paper join toward left side.
Section Four: Colophon 6 on one sheet of brownish paper, different texture and consistency from
other sections; ink tonalities generally pale.
Section Five: Colophon 7 on one sheet of cream color paper; much unused space to left.
.
1. Xu Shouhe 徐守和 (1574–after 1646) – see also colophon 7, below
Ink on paper. Separately mounted section 1 (two joined sheets), right side.
7 columns, standard script. Transcription of Baomu tie
晉王大令《保母帖》釋文
郎邪王獻之保母，姓李，名意如，廣漢人也。在母家志行高秀，歸王氏柔順恭懃。屬文能
草書，解釋老旨趣。年七十，興寧三年歲在乙丑二月六日，無疾而[卒 2
] 終。己卯既望葬焉
，柩出□□□□岡下，殉以曲水小硯、交螭方壺，樹雙柏於墓上，立貞石而志之。悲
夫！後八百餘載，知獻之保母宮于茲土者，尚[可考]焉！
崇禎八年乙亥季春廿八日，朗白徐守和書。
Transcription of The Epitaph for My Nanny, by the Grand Minister Wang [Xianzhi].3 [Text
translated above. Note differences in Chinese transcription of damaged column 6]. Twentyeighth
day of the last spring month in the yihai year of the Chongzhen reign period [May 14, 1635],
written by Langbai Xu Shouhe.
Signature: 朗白徐守和
Langbai Xu Shouhe
Date: 崇禎八年乙亥季春廿八日
Twenty-eighth day of the last spring month in the yihai year of the
Chongzhen reign period [May 14, 1635]
Seals: none
2. Hongli 弘曆, the Qianlong 乾隆 emperor (1711–1799; reigned 1735–95)
Ink on paper. Separately mounted section 1 (two joined sheets), left side.
8 columns running script.
保母墓甎，至宋寧宗嘉泰癸亥，始見於世。其文有『八百餘載』之語，若前知者。周必大
《平園集》中，亦嘗及之，要知名蹟流傳有數，固無足怪。董香光摹入《戲鴻堂帖》中，
臨池家遂人有其書，而初搨絕少。今乃得之，正香光藏本，謂是晉搨，縱未必然，其為大
令親書於甎，晉人所刻，固無可疑。宋潛溪以《蘭亭》，乃唐人鉤摹入石。此固當勝一語
，足為定論，姜堯章辨證轉辭費耳。乾隆庚午小除夕，秉燭御識。
It was not until the guihai year in the Jiatai reign period of Emperor Ningzong of the Song
dynasty [1203] that the tomb brick [bearing the Epitaph for] My Nanny first appeared in the
world. Its text has the seemingly prescient phrase ―eight hundred years and more,‖ which Zhou
Bida [1126–1204] also mentions once in his Collected Works of Flat Garden.
4 But as we all
know, there is a destiny to the handing down of famous works, so there is certainly nothing to
wonder about [in this]. Dong Xiangguang [Dong Qichang, 1555–1636] copied [the rubbing] into
his Xihongtang tie [Manuscripts from the Hall of the Playful Goose], but although later followers
of the calligrapher know the writing, original rubbings [from the actual brick] are exceptionally
rare. 5 Now We have acquired this [rubbing], which is precisely the version collected by
Xiangguang [see colophon 4], and although it may not actually be a rubbing from the Jin dynasty
as he says, it certainly cannot be doubted that the Grand Minister [Wang Xianzhi] personally
wrote on the brick, which then was carved by a Jin contemporary. Song Qianqi [Song Lian,
1310–1381] believed the Lanting [Orchid Pavilion] carved into stone was a tracing copy [of the
original] made during the Tang dynasty. This is certainly a winning argument and should be
taken as settled opinion, so all the analysis [to the contrary] by Jiang Yaozhang [Jiang Kui, ca.
1155–ca. 1221] turns out to be simply a big waste of words.6 Inscribed by the Emperor with
candle in hand on the evening before New Year's Eve in the gengwu year of the Qianlong reign
period [January 25, 1751].7
Signature: 御
the Emperor
Date: 乾隆庚午小除夕
evening before New Year's Eve in the gengwu year of the Qianlong reign
period [January 25, 1751]
Seals: (1)
Qianlong『乾』『隆』(linked circle-square relief)
3. Zhao Mengfu 趙孟頫 (1254–1322)
Ink on paper. Separately mounted section 2 (two joined sheets), right side.
7 columns, running script.
吾舊藏此《保母帖》，郭右之從吾求，乃輟以與之，不意十五年後重見之也。《保母帖》
雖晚出，然是大令無恙時所刻，與世所傳臨摹上石者萬萬也。至大二年七月廿日為范喬年
題，子昂。
I previously owned this [copy of] the Epitaph for My Nanny, but Guo Youzhi [Guo Tianxi, see
colophon 5] kept after me asking for it, until I finally gave it to him to stop, and never thought
I’d see it again fifteen years later. Although the Epitaph for My Nanny was discovered quite late,
nevertheless it was carved while the Grand Minister [Wang Xianzhi] was healthy [and alive], and
is worth a million of those [other works] passed down in the world that were copied onto stone.
Inscribed for Fan Qiaonian [unidentified] on the twentieth day of the seventh lunar-month in the
second year of the Zhida reign period [August 25, 1309], Zi’ang.8
Signature: 子昂
Zi’ang
Date: 至大二年七月廿日
Twentieth day of the seventh lunar month in the second year of the Zhida
reign period [August 25, 1309]
Seals: (2)
Zhao shi Zi’ang『趙氏子昂』(square relief)
Songxuezhai『松雪齋』(rectangle relief)
4. Dong Qichang 董其昌 (1555–1636)
Ink on paper. Separately mounted section 2 (two joined sheets), left side.
8 columns running script.
書家得宋搨已為罕見，況唐搨乎！又誰知有晉搨如《保[寶]
9母帖》？是王子敬刻八百年而
再出，又六百年而落吾手。宋時聚訟《定武禊帖》者，似多事矣。癸酉十月朔頒曆日得之菜市
口秦人。甲戌九月望後二日題，其昌。
It is already quite rare for a calligrapher to acquire a rubbing done in the Song dynasty, and how
much more so, a rubbing from the Tang! So who knew that a rubbing from the Jin dynasty, such
as the Epitaph for My Nanny, might even exist? It reappeared eight hundred years after Wang
Zijing [Wang Xianzhi] carved it, and after another six hundred years, fell into my hands. [It
makes] all that disputation during the Song dynasty about the Dingwu Purification Text seem
like just a lot of bother!10
I acquired this from a ―Qin fellow‖ at the entrance to the vegetable market on Publishing the Calendar Day, the first
day of the tenth lunar-month in the guichou year [November 2, 1633]. Inscribed on the second day after the full
11 moon in the ninth lunar-month of the jiaxu year [November 7, 1634], [Dong] Qichang.
Signature: 其昌
Qichang
Date: 甲戌九月望後二日
On the second day after the full moon in the ninth lunar-month of the jiaxu
year [November 7, 1634]
Seals: (2)
Qinggong taibao『青宮太保』(square intaglio)
Dong Qichang yin『董其昌印』(square intaglio)
5. Guo Tianxi 郭天錫 (ca. 1235–ca.1302) – see also Collector Seals 1, below.
Ink on paper. Section 3, separately mounted.
11 columns, standard script.
右晉太宰中書令王献之字子敬書《保母帖》。至元已丑九月獲于趙兵部。子昂及來杭，與
別本較之，大不同。然未易與口舌爭，深曉王氏書者，迺能知之。予愛帖中『氏』字、『
於』字、『石』字、『于』字，臨學三年，無一字似者，古人真難到耶？壬辰長至日，
易跋。
蘭亭貴重玉石刻，云是率更脫真蹟，至今真贗乱紛紜，爭佀王書親入石，八百餘年保母辞
，献之筆法似羲之，斷碑剝落百餘字，高作歐顏千世師。
金城郭天錫審定秘玩。
At right is the Epitaph for My Nanny written by the Jin dynasty Grand Preceptor and Minister of
the Secretariat, Wang Xianzhi, who had the courtesy name Zijing. In the ninth lunar-month of
the jichou year in the Zhiyuan reign period [September 16–October 15, 1289], I received it from
Zhao [Mengfu, 1254–1322], [vice minister] in the Ministry of War. When Zi’ang [Zhao Mengfu]
arrived in Hang[zhou] and compared it with other versions [of the rubbing], [he found that] it
was very different. But while I am not much given to oral disputation, anyone who has a
profound understanding of Wang’s calligraphy will be able to know it [is genuine]. In the text, I
love the characters shi [family], yu [at], shi [stone], and yu [in], and I have copied and practiced
them for three years without getting a single one to look quite right. So truly impossible, is it not,
to achieve [the level of] the ancients! On the day of the summer solstice in the renchen year
[June 14, 1292], colophon by Xi.12
When he cut the precious Orchid Pavilion into stone,
It is said that Shuaigeng lost much of the original.13
Until today, real and fake are tangled in confusion,
So I strive to copy what Wang himself put on stone.
In his nanny’s epitaph from eight hundred years ago,
The calligraphy of Xianzhi looks like that of Xizhi.
By the hundred damaged words upon this broken tablet,
Above both Ou and Yan, he is the master for all time.14
Personal treasure, examined and authenticated by Guo Tianxi of Jincheng.15
Signature: 郭天錫
Guo Tianxi
Date: 壬辰長至日
on the day of the summer solstice in the renchen year [June 14, 1292]
Seals: (4)
Tianxi『天錫』(square intaglio)
Jincheng Guo shi『金城郭氏』(square relief)
Kuaixuezhai『快雪齋』(rectangle relief)
Beishan zhenwan『北山珍玩』(square intaglio)
6. Chen Conglong 陳從龍 (active mid-14th century)
Ink on paper. Section 4, separately mounted.
12 columns, running-standard script.
晉王羲之書法入神，一傳至獻之而筆法似之，豈一家授受有專門之祕？不然，何千載而下
，竟無有能似之者？國朝以來，惟吳興趙子昂學古書法，多蓄周、秦、漢、晉篆、隸、真
、草碑刻。以善書名當時，其博古所得者多矣。至其書又自成一家。獻之《保母帖》書法
之精，真本似此不可多得矣。由興寧幽壙所藏，而其誌已知其後八百載復出。今是帖自子
昂四傳而至豫章龔本立。古物去留，固自有數。獻之誌壙而卜年顯晦如期，豈書法之神而
數亦神耶？至正十七年六月廿日，長沙陳從龍題《保母帖》後。
The calligraphy of Wang Xizhi [ca. 303–ca. 361] of the Jin dynasty entered the divine. As he
transmitted it all to Xianzhi, whose brushwork was just like his, could there have been some
special secret [of the art] that was transmitted hand to hand within the family? If not, then why
has there been no one over the past thousand years who is able to be like them? Since the advent
of the [Yuan] dynasty, only Zhao Zi’ang [Zhao Mengfu, 1254–1322] of Wuxing studied ancient
[styles of] calligraphy, and assembled many [rubbings] of stele engravings from the Zhou, Qin,
Han, and Jin dynasties [carved in] seal, clerical, standard, and cursive script. That he became
famous in his time for good calligraphy owed much indeed to the broad knowledge he had
acquired of antiquity, and in his own calligraphy, he developed a unique personal style. [Wang]
Xianzhi’s Epitaph for My Nanny is the quintessence of calligraphy, and genuine versions such as
this cannot often be found. From the Xingning reign period [363–66] it lay concealed in a dark
grave, yet its text already foretold that it would re-emerge eight hundred years later. Starting
from Zi’ang [Zhao Mengfu], this rubbing has now changed hands four times until coming to
Gong Benli [unidentified] of Yuzhang. Whether an ancient object disappears or survives, each
certainly has its own destiny. Xianzhi composed a tomb record and predicted the appointed times
of its appearance and disappearance, so could it be that this god of calligraphy was also the god
of destiny? On the twentieth day of the sixth lunar month in the seventeenth year of the Zhizheng
reign period [July 7, 1357], inscribed by Chen Conglong of Changsha following the Epitaph for
My Nanny.
Signature: 陳從龍
Chen Conglong
Date: 至正十七年六月廿日
Twentieth day of the sixth lunar month in the seventeenth year of the
Zhizheng reign period [July 7, 1357]
Seals: none
7. Xu Shouhe 徐守和 (1574–after 1646) – see also colophon 1, above Ink on
paper. Section 5, separately mounted.
15 columns, standard script. Poem (8x7), plus prose postscript.
和郭佑之《保母帖》贊
書家何以重手刻，古墨蟲消別留蹟，禊帖聚訟吾猶人，定武浪傳五字石，曹娥當墮預占辭
，保母應出期合之，鑿鑿殘碑百廿字，底須蕭翼賺才師。
蔡中郎題《曹娥碑》云，『三百年後，碑冢當墮江中』。茲《保母志》云，『八百年後，
知獻之保母宮于茲土』。豈神物之顯晦，亦有數存乎其間哉！此磚刻相傳出自大令手，不
得而知，至於藏鋒斂鍔，大有漢魏篆籀風格。夜闇手摸，猶知其高出《定武》一層也。文
亦古澹佳絕。由趙松雪傳流至今，收藏者代不一家，皆當時名墨，豈易得也耶？崇禎甲戌
仲冬哉生，明燈下，清賞識此，小清閟主人徐守和。
―Encomium to harmonize with Guo Youzhi’s [poem] on the Epitaph for My Nanny”
[Poem not translated].
The text of the Grave Stele for Cao E, by Inner Gentleman [of the Left] Cai [Yong, 133–192],
says, ―after three hundred years the stele and grave mound shall collapse into the river.‖ And
here the Record of My Nanny says, ―eight hundred years hence and more, it shall still be known
that
Xianzhi's nanny lies interred in this ground.‖ Oh, how the appearance or disappearance of a
divine object is [governed by] the destiny that lies within it! While we cannot know if the carved
text that has been passed down originated from the Grand Minister’s hand, [the way its writing]
―conceals the point and hides the edge‖ is very much in the style of seal script [practiced] during
the Han [bce 206–220 ce] and Wei [220–265] dynasties. Just touching it in the darkness of night,
I know that it is one level up from the [calligraphy of] the Dingwu [version of the Orchid
Pavilion]. The literary text also has an antique simplicity and is exceptionally beautiful. Passing
from Zhao Songxue [Zhao Mengfu, 1254–1322] down to the present, every collector without
exception was in his time a famous [master of] ink. How could [such a thing] be easy to obtain?
On the zaisheng [third] day of the mid-winter [month] in the jiaxu year of the Chongzhen reign
period [December 22, 1634],16 Xiaoqingbi zhuren Xu Shouhe inscribed this by lamplight with
pure appreciation.
Signature: 小清閟主人徐守和
Xiaoqingbi zhuren Xu Shouhe
Date: 崇禎甲戌仲冬哉生
On the zaisheng [third] day of the mid-winter [month] in the jiaxu year of
the Chongzhen reign period [December 22, 1634, or January 4, 1635]
Seals: (2):
Xu Shouhe yin『徐守和印』(square relief)
Langbai shi『朗白氏』(square intaglio)
Abstract
17 Total — 14 on rubbing, 3 on colophons
1. Guo Tianxi 郭天錫 (ca. 1235–ca. 1302) – (1) – see also Colophon 5, above.
Beishan zhenwan『北山珍玩』(square intaglio) – rubbing, lower left
2. Hongli 弘曆, the Qianlong 乾隆 emperor (1711–1799; reigned 1735–96) – (9)
Gu xi tianzi『古希天子』(circle relief) – rubbing/mounting join, right side
Sanxitang jingjian xi『三希堂精鑑璽』(rectangle relief) – rubbing/mounting join, right
side
Yi zisun『宜子孫』(square intaglio) – rubbing/mounting join, right side
Leshoutang jiancang yin『樂壽堂鑑藏印』(rectangle intaglio) – rubbing/mounting join,
right side
Bazheng maonian zhi bao『八徵耄念之寶』(rectangle relief) – rubbing/mounting join,
right side
Qianlong yulan zhi bao『乾隆御覽之寶』(oval relief) – rubbing, middle, top
Qianlong jianshang『乾隆鑑賞』(circle intaglio) – rubbing/mounting join, left side
Shiqu baoji『石渠寶笈』(square relief) – rubbing/mounting join, left side Shou『壽』
(rectangle intaglio) – rubbing/mounting join, left side
3. Puyi 溥義, the Xuantong 宣統 emperor (1906–1967; reigned 1908–12) – (2)
Xuantong jianshang『宣統鑑賞』(square relief) – rubbing, middle, top
Wuyizhai jingjian xi『無逸齋精鑒璽』(rectangle relief) – rubbing/mounting join, left side,
bottom
4. Yu Xiezhong 余協中 (1898–1983)
Xiezhong shangwan『協中賞玩』(square relief) – section 2, colophon 4, left
5. Unidentified – (5)
faint traces (rectangle relief) – rubbing, lower left
partial traces – rubbing, left corner
Hetong『合』『同』(linked-square relief) – section one, colophon 1/colophon 2 join,
top – (1/2)
Liaofuerzhai zhi yin『聊復爾齋之印』(square relief) – section one, colophon
1/colophon 2 join, bottom
Hetong『合』『同』(linked-square relief) – section one, colophon 1/colophon 2 join,
bottom – (2/2)
1. Guo Tianxi 郭天錫 (ca. 1235–ca. 1302) – (1) – see also Colophon 5, above.
Beishan zhenwan『北山珍玩』(square intaglio) – rubbing, lower left
2. Hongli 弘曆, the Qianlong 乾隆 emperor (1711–1799; reigned 1735–96) – (9)
Gu xi tianzi『古希天子』(circle relief) – rubbing/mounting join, right side
Sanxitang jingjian xi『三希堂精鑑璽』(rectangle relief) – rubbing/mounting join, right
side
Yi zisun『宜子孫』(square intaglio) – rubbing/mounting join, right side
Leshoutang jiancang yin『樂壽堂鑑藏印』(rectangle intaglio) – rubbing/mounting join,
right side
Bazheng maonian zhi bao『八徵耄念之寶』(rectangle relief) – rubbing/mounting join,
right side
Qianlong yulan zhi bao『乾隆御覽之寶』(oval relief) – rubbing, middle, top
Qianlong jianshang『乾隆鑑賞』(circle intaglio) – rubbing/mounting join, left side
Shiqu baoji『石渠寶笈』(square relief) – rubbing/mounting join, left side Shou『壽』
(rectangle intaglio) – rubbing/mounting join, left side
3. Puyi 溥義, the Xuantong 宣統 emperor (1906–1967; reigned 1908–12) – (2)
Xuantong jianshang『宣統鑑賞』(square relief) – rubbing, middle, top
Wuyizhai jingjian xi『無逸齋精鑒璽』(rectangle relief) – rubbing/mounting join, left side,
bottom
4. Yu Xiezhong 余協中 (1898–1983)
Xiezhong shangwan『協中賞玩』(square relief) – section 2, colophon 4, left
5. Unidentified – (5)
faint traces (rectangle relief) – rubbing, lower left
partial traces – rubbing, left corner
Hetong『合』『同』(linked-square relief) – section one, colophon 1/colophon 2 join,
top – (1/2)
Liaofuerzhai zhi yin『聊復爾齋之印』(square relief) – section one, colophon
1/colophon 2 join, bottom
Hetong『合』『同』(linked-square relief) – section one, colophon 1/colophon 2 join,
bottom – (2/2)
Rights Holder
National Museum of Asian Art (Freer Sackler)
Identifier
F1980.7
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abstract
Attributed to Wang Xianzhi 王獻之