Li Pinghan
01 · Lineage & Regional School
Li Pinghan, Male, Han, from Xingzi, Jiangxi, is a sixth-batch national representative bearer of Jinxingyan Making Craftsmanship (Ⅷ-76). The tradition is documented in Xingzi, Jiangxi. Within the regional tradition and school record of Jinxingyan Making Craftsmanship in Xingzi, Jiangxi: The shapes and decorative motifs of traditional Jinxing inkstones are deeply local in character because they draw on local products, landscapes, and folklore; their style is archaic and unpretentious, sketch-like and freehand, making them a treasure of Chinese folk art. The Jinxing inkstone's production area is concentrated at the foot of Tuoling Mountain in Hengtang Town, Xingzi County. In the Republican era over a hundred workshops coexisted; after the Reform and Opening-up, specialized factories, private firms, and individual workshops took over in turn, creating a situation in which the county produced and sold for itself while also trading beyond its borders. In recent years, three pressures have converged at once — over-exploitation of quarries, neglect of craft skills, and the passing off of inferior inkstones as genuine — eroding the traditional advantage of the place of origin. Revival must begin by safeguarding both the stone source and the master–apprentice line of transmission. Folklore holds that the first Jinxing inkstone was made by Tao Yuanming of the Jin dynasty, and the Northern Song scholar Mi Fu also mentioned the Xingzi bluestone inkstone in his "History of Inkstones" (Yanshi). During the Ming dynasty, inkstone making in Xingzi declined for a time, but recovered and prospered again by the mid-Qing. In the Republican era, over a hundred inkstone workshops operated within Xingzi County, and the Jinxing inkstones they produced were exhibited and won awards at international exhibitions on two occasions. From the 1980s to the 1990s, Jinxing inkstones frequently won awards at national exhibitions and competitions, and their products were exported to Japan, South Korea, Southeast Asia, and countries in Europe and the Americas. In the late 1990s, the reform of state-owned enterprises transferred the trade to the private sector, and today nearly a hundred private firms and individual workshops make inkstones in Xingzi County.
02 · Mastery & Signature Works
The bearer record for Li Pinghan is anchored in the documented technical standards of Jinxingyan Making Craftsmanship in Xingzi, Jiangxi. Within the documented technical tradition of Jinxingyan Making Craftsmanship in Xingzi, Jiangxi: The Jinxing inkstone, also known as the Jinxing Song inkstone, uses Jinxing stone as its raw material, and its main production area lies at the foot of Tuoling Mountain in Hengtang Town, Xingzi County, Jiangxi Province. After the founding of the People's Republic of China, two specialized inkstone factories were successively established; they updated designs and reformed the craft, enabling the rapid development of Jinxing inkstone production. The Jinxing inkstone uses Song stone quarried at Tuoling in Xingzi County. This stone is rare and precious, with a tough yet fine and delicate texture, warm and lustrous, and dense, intricate veins; its color and grain possess natural beauty. Once shaped into an inkstone it produces ink very quickly, retains water without drying, yields no powder even after long grinding, and gives an ink rich in luster. From raw extraction to finished product, Jinxing inkstone making comprises five process steps: quarrying, material selection, blank shaping, carving, and polishing. The supply of material for Jinxing inkstones has always been confined to the single site of Tuoling: Song stone is rare and precious, and once quarrying was unrestricted, good material could no longer be selected — this was also the starting point of the craft's damaged reputation since the 1990s. From the Tao Yuanming inkstone handed down since the Jin dynasty to the Xingzi bluestone inkstone recorded in Mi Fu's "History of Inkstones" of the Northern Song, this thread shows that the use of Jinxing stone predates the extant name of the inkstone. In the Republican era, Xingzi County had over a hundred inkstone workshops, turning inkstone making into a local industry; exchanges with markets in Japan, South Korea, and Europe and the Americas in turn raised the demands on the stone material. Among the five process steps, material selection and polishing most distinguish a craftsman: after quarrying and selection come blank shaping and carving, and finally polishing; only when it grinds to produce ink very quickly, retains water without drying, and yields no powder after long grinding is the inkstone considered complete. After the founding of the PRC, the two specialized inkstone factories that were successively established updated styles and reformed the craft, causing Jinxing inkstone output to expand rapidly for a time. With the restructuring of state-owned enterprises in the late 1990s, inkstone making in Xingzi County passed to nearly a hundred private firms and individual workshops; the bearers of the tradition changed, yet the sequence of process steps remained those same five. Representative repertoire, works and technical entries recorded for the project include: "Quarrying the Song stone": The stone comes from below Tuoling hill in Hengtang; the vein is limited and over-quarrying cuts off the good material. "Sorting the blanks": Blanks are chosen for hardness, fineness and close grain; the natural beauty of colour and figure is decided here and cannot be altered later. "Rough-shaping the blank": The blank is shaped to a design drawn from local produce, landscape and legend, in a plain, free style. "Carving": Carving draws motifs and forms on the blank with clean, spare cuts; over-detailed work loses the plain intent of Song-dynasty inkstones.
Quarrying the Song stone
The stone comes from below Tuoling hill in Hengtang; the vein is limited and over-quarrying cuts off the good material.
Sorting the blanks
Blanks are chosen for hardness, fineness and close grain; the natural beauty of colour and figure is decided here and cannot be altered later.
Rough-shaping the blank
The blank is shaped to a design drawn from local produce, landscape and legend, in a plain, free style.
Carving
Carving draws motifs and forms on the blank with clean, spare cuts; over-detailed work loses the plain intent of Song-dynasty inkstones.
03 · Transmission & Safeguarding Status
In 2025, Li Pinghan was announced in the sixth batch of national representative bearers for Jinxingyan Making Craftsmanship, with Xingzi, Jiangxi as the declared area. Within the documented safeguarding record of Jinxingyan Making Craftsmanship in Xingzi, Jiangxi: The project was inscribed in the national inventory in 2006 (batch 1), with Xingzi, Jiangxi as its declared area, and Lushan City Cultural Center as its safeguarding unit. Since the project was inscribed in the national inventory, its declared area and safeguarding unit have carried out documentation, transmission and presentation within the national safeguarding framework. Together, the inventory record and the project archive form the public documentary basis for the bearer’s transmission practice.
04 · Associated Heritage Item Dossier
Historical origin
Folklore holds that the first Jinxing inkstone was made by Tao Yuanming of the Jin dynasty, and the Northern Song scholar Mi Fu also mentioned the Xingzi bluestone inkstone in his "History of Inkstones" (Yanshi). During the Ming dynasty, inkstone making in Xingzi declined for a time, but recovered and prospered again by the mid-Qing.
05 · Fellow National Bearers Lineage
National representative bearers recorded under the same item code, ordered from the first to the sixth batch. Batch order is not a teacher–student relationship.
| Bearer | Declared area | Roster code | Relation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Li Pinghan | Xingzi, Jiangxi | — | This page |
06 · Archival Sources & Bibliography
This static English edition is rendered at the edge for search engines, AI crawlers and readers without JavaScript. Compiled from official national representative bearer archival records and the associated project dossier, organized by topic and translated into English. 阅读中文版。