Ouyang Xun
Tang dynasty calligrapher, politician, and writer; one of the Four Great Calligraphers of the Early Tang.
Ouyang Xun (557–641), also known by his courtesy name Xinben, was a calligrapher, politician, and writer active during the early Tang dynasty. He was born in Changsha into a family of government officials and died in what is now Anhui province. A diligent student with broad knowledge of the classics, he served the Sui dynasty as Imperial Doctor in 611. Under the Tang, he held positions as censor and scholar at the Hongwen Academy, where he taught calligraphy. He was a major contributor to the *Yiwen Leiju* and later served as Imperial Calligrapher, carving several important imperial steles. Skilled in regular script, his best-known work is the Stele in the Jiucheng Palace. Alongside Yu Shinan, Xue Ji, and Chu Suiliang, he was counted among the Four Great Calligraphers of the Early Tang. He also designed the inscription for the Kaiyuan Tongbao coin, a highly influential currency that shaped coin calligraphy in Japan, Sogdia, and Vietnam. The logo of the Japanese newspaper *Asahi Shimbun* uses characters taken from his Zongsheng Temple Inscription. Historically, Ouyang was noted for his legendary, almost supernatural intellect and his monkey-like ugliness. These traits were satirized in an anonymous late 7th-century tale, “A Supplement to Jiang Zong’s Biography of a White Ape.” The story recounts how General Ouyang He, Ouyang Xun’s historical father, loses his beautiful young wife to an invisible force while campaigning in the south. Searching for miles, the general finds her and other women held captive by a magical white ape on a mountain. The women warn that the ape is too powerful to fight directly, so they help the general get it drunk and strike its only weak spot below the navel. Before dying, the ape reveals the general’s wife is pregnant and asks that the child be spared. The general returns north with his wife, the other women, and the ape’s treasures. The tale ends with the birth of an unnamed son a year later, implying that Ouyang Xun was the unnatural child of the general’s wife and the white ape.
- born
- 557, Changsha
- died
- 641, modern Anhui province
- field
- Calligraphy, politics, literature
- nationality
- Chinese
- known_for
- Regular script, Stele in the Jiucheng Palace, Kaiyuan Tongbao coin inscription
Lore & Background
Ouyang Xun was born in 557 in Changsha to a family of government officials. He served under the Sui dynasty in 611 as Imperial Doctor. Under the Tang dynasty, he served as censor and scholar at the Hongwen Academy, where he taught calligraphy. He was a principal contributor to the Yiwen Leiju. He became the Imperial Calligrapher and inscribed several major imperial steles. He was good at regular script, and his most famous work is the Stele in the Jiucheng Palace. He was considered a cultured scholar and a government official. Along with Yu Shinan, Xue Ji, and Chu Suiliang, he became known as one of the Four Great Calligraphers of the Early Tang. He notably wrote the inscription of the Kaiyuan Tongbao cash coin, which became one of the most influential coins in Chinese history, influencing calligraphic styles of other coinages in Japan, Sogdia, and Vietnam. The words in the logo of the Japanese newspaper Asahi Shimbun were extracted from Ouyang's work Zongsheng Temple Inscription.
Reader's Guide
Ouyang Xun's significance rests on his mastery of regular script and his role as one of the Four Great Calligraphers of the Early Tang, alongside Yu Shinan, Xue Ji, and Chu Suiliang. His most famous work is the Stele in the Jiucheng Palace. He inscribed the Kaiyuan Tongbao cash coin, which became one of the most influential coins in Chinese history, affecting calligraphic styles in Japan, Sogdia, and Vietnam. The logo of the Japanese newspaper Asahi Shimbun uses characters extracted from his Zongsheng Temple Inscription. He was a principal contributor to the Yiwen Leiju. A late 7th-century tale, “A Supplement to Jiang Zong’s Biography of a White Ape,” lampooned his legendary monkey-like ugliness and supernatural intellect, implying he was the unnatural offspring of his mother and a magic white ape. The tale tells how General Ouyang He, Ouyang Xun's historical father, killed the ape, who revealed the general's wife was pregnant and begged him not to kill the child. The tale ends with the birth of an unnamed son a year later.
Did You Know?
- Ouyang Xun served under the Sui dynasty in 611 as Imperial Doctor.
- He was a principal contributor to the Yiwen Leiju.
- He inscribed the Kaiyuan Tongbao cash coin, which influenced coin calligraphy in Japan, Sogdia, and Vietnam.
- The logo of the Japanese newspaper Asahi Shimbun uses characters from his Zongsheng Temple Inscription.
- A late 7th-century tale lampooned his legendary monkey-like ugliness, implying he was the son of a magic white ape.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Ouyang Xun?
Ouyang Xun (557–641) was a Tang dynasty calligrapher, government official, and scholar originally from Changsha. He is traditionally ranked among the Four Great Calligraphers of the Early Tang period.
What script style is Ouyang Xun most associated with?
He is best remembered for his mastery of regular script (kaishu), a formal and structured style that became a foundational model for later Chinese calligraphers. His brushwork emphasized vertical strokes and a disciplined sense of balance.
What are Ouyang Xun's most famous works?
He is credited with the calligraphy on the Jiucheng Palace stele, the inscription for the Kaiyuan Tongbao coin, and contributing to the compilation of the Yiwen Leiju encyclopedia. These pieces remain standard reference points in the study of Tang-era brushwork.
What was Ouyang Xun's role outside of calligraphy?
Beyond his artistic reputation, he served as a court politician and literary scholar within the early Tang administration. His involvement in the Yiwen Leiju project reflects a broader engagement with imperial scholarship and bureaucratic culture.
Why is Ouyang Xun considered important in calligraphy history?
His disciplined regular-script style set a benchmark that influenced generations of scribes and artists well beyond the Tang era. Being counted among the Four Great Calligraphers of the Early Tang cemented his place as a defining figure in the Chinese calligraphic tradition.
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