Cai Xiang

Cai Xiang (1012–1067) was a Chinese calligrapher, politician, structural engineer, and poet. Along with Su Shi, Huang Tingjian and Mi Fu, Cai Xiang is typically regarded as one of the Four Great Masters of the Song dynasty.

Biography He was born during the Dazhongxiangfu era of the Song dynasty in Xianyou county of Xinghua prefecture, now Xianyou County in Putian of Fujian province.

In the eight year of the Tiansheng era (1030 CE) he obtained the degree of jinshi (進士, lit. "advanced scholar"), a graduate who passed the triennial court exam. His highest rank was Secretariat Drafter of the Duanming Court (Duanmingdian Xueshi), in charge of written communication of the imperial government. During the Qingli era (1041–1048 CE), he was the Officer of Transportation (Zhuanyunshi) in Fujian. While acting as a prefect in Fujian, he also was in charge of overseeing the construction of the Wan-an Bridge at Quanzhou.

He pioneered the manufacturing of small Dragon Tribute Tea Cake of superlative quality, as it was reputed to be harder to obtain than gold.

Cai Xiang's style name was Junmo , and his posthumous name was Zhonghuei .

Works One of his most famous publications is his essay "The Record of Tea", also known as the "Tea Note", which he wrote in 1049–1053.

Calligraphy: Wan'an Bridge Report Tablet Poetry: Collected Works of Cai Zhonghuei Letter: Letter on Cheng Xin Tang Paper

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