徽墨：煙與膠的千錘百煉
Hui Inkstick: An Odyssey of Soot and Glue
墨，是中國傳統書寫、繪畫的顏料，以水調和在硯台中細細研磨可以産生用於毛筆書寫的墨汁。墨的發源與中國人獨特的書寫方式密不可分，筆、墨、紙、硯被古人統稱為“文房四寶”。
Inksticks are a type of solid ink used as pigment in traditional Chinese calligraphy and brush painting. To make ink, the inkstick is ground against an inkstone with a small quantity of water, and the dark liquid thus generated is then applied with an ink brush. The invention of inksticks is inseparable from the unique writing habits in traditional China. Together with the ink brush, inkstone and Xuan paper, these four writing implements form the “Four Treasures of the Study”.
徽墨，是墨中最著名的派別，誕生於南唐時期，河北墨工奚超南遷到安徽歙縣，取當地的大松為原料，製成的墨“黝黑髮光、入紙不暈、歷久不衰”。受到南唐後主李煜賞識，賜其國姓“李”。從此，徽州李墨便名揚天下，有“黃金易得，李墨難求”之譽。之後有大批工匠奔赴徽州，學習李墨之法，徽州從此成為全國制墨中心。
The “Hui inkstick” is the most famous inkstick in China. It was invented by master ink maker Xi Chao during the Southern Tang Dynasty (937-975). At the time, he moved southward from his hometown Hebei to Shexian County of Huizhou, and used local aged pines to produce inksticks, which “shine lik ebony, never soak the paper, and endure after applied”. Emperor Li Yu of the Southern Tang greatly treasured the inksticks Xi Chao made, and as a reward gave him the imperial surname “Li”. As a result, the inksticks made by the Li family in Huizhou became celebrated throughout the country, with its reputation best reflected by the saying, “It’s easy to get a piece of gold, but difficult to obtain a Li inkstick.” After that, group after group of ink makers travelled to Huizhou to study the techniques behind the Li inkstick, making the prefecture the center of ink making in China.
古人談到墨，曾説：“得徽墨者，如名將之得良馬。”古法制墨全部採用手工製作，一錠徽墨的誕生，要經過千錘百煉，至少歷時一冬一夏，所以有“一兩徽墨，一兩金”之説。徽墨的製作工藝繁瑣複雜，大部分工序雖都是體力活，卻需要十分仔細。
In ancient times, people would say “Good inksticks are to scholars what good horse are to generals.” The conventional ink making is pure handicraft. It takes at least an entire year of painstaking effort, including hundreds and thousands of hammering and striking of the ink paste, to make just one Hui inkstick. Hence there is the saying, “Hui inkstick is precious as gold”. The Hui inkstick's production is laborious and sophisticated. It taxes the brains as well as brawn.
用燈草點燃桐油，或將松樹去皮焚燒，把陶瓷碗倒扣在上面，縷縷黑煙撞在碗上，便生成黑色的煙灰，這層黑灰就是製作墨最基本的原材料。待冷卻後掃取煙灰收集，一年出量特別少。
Typical production of the Hui inkstick begins with producing soot. The craftsmen light tung oil with a lit rush, or burn peeled pine wood, placing a porcelain bowl above. The smoke from the fire fumigates the inverted bowl, and forms a layer of soot, which is the basic material for ink making. The craftsmen wait for the bowl to cool before collecting the soot. Only a very small amount can be produced each year.
徽墨配方極其講究，往煙灰里加麝香、冰片、珍珠粉等名貴材料。想要使墨“堅如玉、研無聲”，就需熬膠。徽墨製作一般使用牛皮膠和骨膠熬製。然後倒入配好的墨料攪拌均勻，形成墨泥。經過上千次的搗杵，墨泥的物理特徵發生改變。是從鬆軟的一團變成一塊堅硬無比的墨錠的必要一步。
The Hui inkstick's production follows a fastidious formula. The craftsmen usually add musk, borneol, pearl powder and other materials to the soot. To make an inkstick that is “hard as jade, and silent while grinding”, it needs to go through a boiling process. Craftsmen usually boil cowhide or animal bones into jelly-like glues and poured it into the raw ingredients, stirring the mixture into ink paste. The thousands of times of pounding and striking with mallet transforrms the ink paste's physical properties.This is necessary for it to finally turn into rocklike inkstick.
墨的模具雕刻非常精細，雕山水、人物、花鳥、書法，不僅要雕出好形，更雕出好意。墨團搓成圓柱狀，嵌入墨模壓制，冷卻定型後即可脫模。模上的圖案就印在了墨錠表面。
The ink molds, used to print patterns onto the inksticks, are meticulously carved. The carvings include landscape, characters, flowers and birds, and calligraphy. A good mold has to be impressive both techinically and artistically. Craftsmen squeeze the ink paste into cylindrical sticks before pressing them against carved molds. After the sticks fully cool down, they are taken out and the patterns on the molds are printed.
晾墨需要足夠耐心，半年以上的時間，墨才會自然陰幹。墨錠晾至三成幹時，將毛邊打磨修平，除掉瑕疵。晾幹後的墨錠在出廠前，要對墨錠上的圖案和字，用顏料進行描畫填彩，以增加墨錠外觀的美感，稱之為“描金”。也是墨品的點睛之筆。
The airing of the inksticks requires tremendous patience, as it takes at least six months before they dry naturally. When the inksticks are 30 percent dry, the craftsmen would take them for trimming to flatten the bristles and remove the blemishes. After the airing is over, and before the inksticks are delivered to the market, the craftsmen paint their patterns and texts with pigment to accentuate the beautiful appearance. This is called “gilding”, a crowning finish to the whole process.
一方徽墨，看似輕巧，實則包含了匠人非凡匠心。墨錠集繪畫、書法、雕刻、造型等藝術于一體，除了實用之外，更是古往今來文人墨客樂於收藏的藝術品。千年傳承，暗香撲面，獨具魅力。
Light though it is, the Hui inkstick contains incredible craftsmentship. It is a comprehensive art treasure involving painting, calligraphy, engraving, and sculpture all in one. Apart from being an excellent writing implement, it is also a collectible sought after by literati throughout the ages. Passed down across generations for over a millennium, the Hui inkstick, with its delicate fragrance, will remian captivating as ever.
