A Letter Beyond

by+Li+Zhuoxi

Letter to Boyuan welcomes visitors at the entrance to the Palace Museums Special Exhibition Precious Collection of the Stone Moat （Shiqu Baoji） in the Hall of Martial Valor （Wuying Dian）.

Containing 47 Chinese characters in five lines on a damaged piece of yellowing paper， it is presented in an extremely long scroll with inscriptions by Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty （1644-1911） with seven seals on the perforation by the emperor and one seal on the perforation by Guo Baochang （1867-1940）， a specialist in ancient porcelain in modern China. Three of the seals have become faint.

The diverse inscriptions and seals left by later generations went far beyond the original work， which shows peoples great respect and high esteem for the work.

Letter to Boyuan was written by Wang Xun （350-401）， an outstanding calligrapher of the Jin Dynasty （265-420）. The 47-character letter expressed Wangs pathos for his far-away friend. It is beautiful and smooth， exuding a flavor of romance， with preface and postscript by Dong Qichang （1555-1636）， a well-known calligrapher and painter of the Ming Dynasty （1368-1644）. It was particularly cherished by Qing Emperor Qianlong.

Worshipped by later generations for centuries， the legendary Wangs work represents the zenith of Chinese calligraphy， headed by master calligrapher Wang Xizhi （303-379） and his son， Wang Xianzhi. The royal collection of the “Three Rare Treasures” also includes the original work by Wang Xun， a distant nephew of Wang Xizhi.

Emperor Qianlong was so excited upon acquiring Letter to Boyuan that he unhesitatingly put it with Timely Clearing After Snowfall， a calligraphic work by Wang Xizhi， and Mid-Autumn Festival， attributed to Wang Xianzhi， in a study in the Hall of Mental Cultivation， naming it “Hall of Three Rare Treasures.”

Of these three rare works amongst the rarest， two were diagnosed imitations， making Letter to Boyuan especially precious， the only of its kind handed down from the Eastern Jin Dynasty （317-420）.

For relics， nothing is worse than social chaos. The three treasures reunited after going through years of twists and turns.

Two of the calligraphic works by Wang Xianzhi and Wang Xun were stored in the Hall of Longevity and Good Health before Puyi， Chinas last emperor， was expelled from the Forbidden City in 1924. During the 1920s and ‘30s， they were sold for bread by imperial concubines when royal families were removed from the palace. They were found in Hong Kong in 1950. Under instructions from former Premier Zhou Enlai， they were repurchased for a large sum and returned to where they belonged – the Palace Museum.

After several rounds of separation and reunion， the Letter remains. So does its glamor， though it has been severely damaged.