Stele of Mount Yi (Yishan bei 嶧山碑)
Stele of Mount Yi (Yishan bei 嶧山碑)
Stele of Mount Yi (Yishan bei 嶧山碑)
Stele of Mount Yi (Yishan bei 嶧山碑)

Currently not on view

Stele of Mount Yi (Yishan bei 嶧山碑),

219 BCE (stele erected); 993 (recut stone by Zheng Wenbao 鄭文寶); 20th century? (rubbing)

Li Si [Li Ssu] traditionally attributed author and calligrapher, 284–208 BCE
Recut stone in 993 by Zheng Wenbao 鄭文寶 , Song Dynasty
Chinese
2002-286 a-b
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More Context

Two sides of a stele. Lesser-seal script calligraphy in 15 columns, 15 characters per column. The stele text and calligraphy has traditionally been attributed to Li Si and was erected after the First Emperor climbed Mount Yi, modern Zou county, Shandong province, in 219 B.C. The stone is now lost. The stele was recut in the Song dynasty in 993 in Chang'an by Zheng Wenbao based on a Southern Tang copy by Xu Xuan 徐鉉. This stone was in the Old Prefectural School in Xi'an (Jiu Xi'an fu xue 舊西安府學) and is now in the Forest of Stelae (Bei lin) in the Shaanxi Provincial Museum. Based on the 993 cutting, six other versions were later cut. In the 993 cutting and in the Princeton rubbing, the seal-script text is followed by a 5-column inscribed record in standard script by Zheng Wenbao dated 993.

Information

Title
Stele of Mount Yi (Yishan bei 嶧山碑)
Dates

219 BCE (stele erected); 993 (recut stone by Zheng Wenbao 鄭文寶); 20th century? (rubbing)

Maker
Li Si [Li Ssu] traditionally attributed author and calligrapher
Recut stone in 993 by Zheng Wenbao 鄭文寶 , Song Dynasty
Medium
Two sheets (unmounted); ink on paper rubbing
Dimensions
a: ca. 150.5 x 82 cm. (59 1/4 x 32 5/16 in.) b: ca. 150.5 x 76 cm. (59 1/4 x 29 15/16 in.)
Credit Line
Gift of Professor Robert Bagley
Object Number
2002-286 a-b
Place Made

Asia, China

Inscription
For an annotated translation and transcription, see Martin Kern, The Stele Inscriptions of Ch'in Shih-huang: Text and Ritual in Early Chinese Imperial Representation (New Haven: American Oriental Society, 2000), pp.10-15.
Culture
Chinese
Period
Qin (style and period)
Type
rubbings
Subject
calligraphy (writing), stelae

–2002 Robert Bagley (Princeton, NJ), by gift to the Princeton University Art Museum, 2002.

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The Museum regularly researches its objects and their collecting histories, updating its records to reflect new information. We also strive to catalogue works of art using language that is consistent with how people, subjects, artists, and cultures describe themselves. As this effort is ongoing, the Museum’s records may be incomplete or contain terms that are no longer acceptable. We welcome your feedback, questions, and additional information that you feel may be useful to us. Email us at collectionsinfo@princeton.edu.

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