Brush rest in 'action'

This portrayal of the Gaoguang Emperor (r. 1813 – 1820) in the Qing dynasty (1644 – 1912) shows the way Chinese court members used the brush rest — on the desk of a ranking scribe or bureaucrat. In this painting, the brush rest was set on the right side of the table in the Emperor’s study. Two brushes are placed on it, along with the inkstone and a brush-rinsing pot. The brush rest prevents the ink on the brushes from staining the table. It became a staple tool of scholars in the Imperial Courts. This painting also reveals the continued utilization of similarly shaped brush rests in the Qing dynasty.