The Calligrapher — Liǔ Gōngquán 柳公权

Tang regular-script master famed for 'bones' of strength; rival to Yan Zhenqing.

Tang calligrapher (778–865), master of regular script — Tang master of bone-strength regular script, paired forever with Yan Zhenqing as 'Yan sinew, Liu bone'. Tang dynasty

Cultural Story

俠 is the traditional brush for 侠, the free sword. The 史记 praises 侠客 who righted the wrongs the court ignored; 侠义 men of the Tang rode to save the weak. A 大侠 owed no lord. To write 俠 keeps the old form on the book cover and the stone.

Common words & phrases

• 侠客 chivalrous person · knight-errant · swordsman
• 侠义 chivalrous · loyal and brave · righteous
• 武侠 martial arts hero · wuxia
• 侠士 chivalrous man · knight
• 大侠 great hero · valiant knight

Read the story behind the character

A 武侠 novel keeps the 俠 in its old title; fans hail a rescuer as 大侠, and a 侠女 leads the comic. The 侠义 code runs through streaming shows and cosplay. Righting wrongs by one's own hand — now on the printed page and the screen — still carries this traditional character forward.