Chinese Woodblock for Ceremonial Papers

This month's feature is a wood-block used for Chinese ceremonial paper and collected in the early 1930's; this particular wood-block is used for printing spirit money, also called joss paper. This wood-block is small, having a diameter of 4 1/8" and being 7/8" thick. It is numbered in the Dard Hunter Collection as #55, making it one of the first pieces in the Museum's inventory. Dard took several trips to East Asia to study hand papermaking, and wrote about his research on spirit money and other papers in his book Chinese Ceremonial Paper (1937). A print of this particular wood-block is on the title page of his book. 

Wood-blocks like this are used to print mantras or charms (wang sheng ch'ien) that resemble money for use in the hereafter. They contain Sanskrit words phonetically rendered in Chinese characters, beginning with Namo Amitabha (Homage to the Buddha of Boundless Compassion and Wisdom) on the outer circle and continuing with a repetition of prayers. In China nearly every household has its own family portraits, and on the night of the Chinese New Year, food is placed on the table in front of them and incense is burned. The paper charms, or prayers, are read in the presence of the portraits, and with every few words a paper mantra is consumed in flames. This ceremony is thought to assure affluence and contentment for the deceased persons depicted in the family portraits. Ceremonial papers are also ritually burned at the funerals of loved ones.  

In order to make prints from a woodblock of this kind, pigment is brushed over the raised characters, a sheet of soft paper is laid upon the block, and the surface rubbed, making an imprint that reflects the image of the carved wood-block. This one was used often with red and black pigments, thus the pink hue on the raised characters and the black in the negative space.  

The Chinese New Year is on January 28 this year; spirit money like this and other ceremonial papers will be burned in many homes to honor the deceased this New Year.  

We hope that you enjoyed this peek at our collection! We'll be back next month with another artifact. Have a great January!