Lingbi Scholars' Rock

Chinese connoisseurs valued Lingbi stones for their mystical beauty. The finest scholar’s stones came from Lingbi, in the northern province of Anhui, renowned for their black tones and natural polished look. Rocks that showed four features—perforations (lou), thinness (shou), openness (tou), and wrinkling (zhou)—were especially prized. This stone may have once sat on the desk of a scholar who contemplated its evocative shapes while composing poetry, painting, or writing calligraphy.