Interpretation of the format of traditional tombstone inscriptions

As the name implies, all the texts written on various monuments are called inscriptions.

Inscriptions on inscriptions refer to the words inscribed on the vertical stones. This type of inscription is specially made for inscriptions. The inscriptions on inscriptions have texts, inscriptions, and order. There is no fixed format, and some do not inscribe the inscription and other words, and directly write the title of the article. Although some articles are inscribed in On the monument, but it is not made for the purpose of erecting the monument, it cannot be called an inscription.

The concept of stele inscriptions, as the name suggests, all the words written on various steles are called stele inscriptions. The custom of making steles in my country has a long history of calligraphy and calligraphy. Steles appeared as early as the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period. At that time, steles, such as palace halls The shadow-measuring stele in China, the animal stele in the ancestral temple, and the lower coffin stele beside the tomb are not inscribed with words. Later, some people inscribed the corresponding words, and various inscriptions were gradually formed. , The ethos of engraving steles has gradually become popular, and steles can be found almost everywhere, and everything can be stele. The stele of disaster, the stele of merit, the stele of tombs, the stele of temples, the stele of holding things, etc. The predecessors practiced, and the later imitated, and the historical sites of China have formed a unique national characteristic of "stele and stone". Therefore, the inscription on the inscription It has become a widely used practical style

The custom of making steles in our country has a long history. As early as the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, steles appeared. At that time, steles, such as the shadow stele in the palace hall, the animal stele in the ancestral temple, and the lower coffin stele beside the tomb, were not carved. Afterwards, some people engraved the corresponding words, and gradually formed various inscriptions.

Inscriptions on inscriptions can be divided into broad and narrow senses. Inscriptions in the narrow sense only refer to the words written for making inscriptions on inscriptions, while inscriptions in the broad sense refer to all the words inscribed on the inscriptions.

In my country, steles have been erected since the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period, but the steles in ancient palaces were not engraved with texts, but were used to measure the time of the sun and shadow; and the steles in ancient ancestral temples were not inscribed with words, but were used to tie sacrifices. The steles on the tombs are also just wooden pillars, with holes cut so that the reels can be put through ropes.

The stele with written characters came only later. In the Qin Dynasty, the stele with written characters was called "carved stone". The stele originally refers to the vertical stone. The words engraved on the stele are called stele inscriptions, which are specially written for the purpose of engraving the stele. The articles not written for the purpose of erecting the stele, although engraved on the stele, cannot be called stele inscriptions.

After the Qin and Han dynasties, tree steles were used to inscribe inscriptions, and if there were steles, there must be inscriptions, so the wordless steles were not taken seriously. Over time, the inscriptions and the stele were combined into one, and the stele refers to the inscription on the stele.

There are many kinds of inscriptions, and they are complex. Today, some inscriptions in the past have died out, some have been developed, and some new inscriptions have been born. Below, we will introduce the situation of inscriptions in detail.

Since ancient times, inscriptions on inscriptions can be said to be eclectic in form. The following is just a brief introduction to the writing of several commonly used inscriptions with relatively stable formats.

(1) Tombstone

The tombstone usually consists of three parts: the header, the main body, and the inscription.

1. Look up

The letterhead mainly writes the deceased's job title, occupation, etc., and some can be omitted.

2. Text

The main text mainly states the title of the deceased and the name of the deceased by the person who erected the monument.

3. Signing

The inscription indicates the identity and name of the person who erected the monument. The time of the monument can be written or not.

(2) Epitaph

Epitaphs usually consist of three parts: title, body and inscription.

1. Title

The title is generally composed of the name of the deceased and the name of the language. For example, the epitaph of Liu Zihou is greater than .

2. Text

In general, the main body of the epitaph consists of three aspects. One is to briefly introduce the main life experiences of the deceased; the other is to evaluate the main achievements and social value of the deceased; Condolences to the unfortunate passing of.

3. Signing

The inscription shall indicate the name of the unit that erected the monument, the name of the author, and the date of writing. It should be pointed out that some epitaphs have the name of the unit that erected the monument or the personal name of the author already written under the title, so the inscription only indicates the date of writing. That's it.