In the Sinosphere, seals (stamps) can be applied on objects to establish personal identification. They are commonly applied on items such as personal documents, office paperwork, contracts, and art. They are used similarly to signatures in the West. Unlike in the West, where wax seals are common, Sinosphere seals are used with ink.

Of Chinese origin, the process soon spread beyond China and across East and Southeast Asia. Various countries in these regions currently use a mixture of seals and hand signatures, and, increasingly, electronic signatures.

Chinese seals are typically made of stone, sometimes of metals, wood, bamboo, plastic, or ivory, and are typically used with red ink or cinnabar paste (). The word 印 ("yìn" in Mandarin, "in" in Japanese and Korean, "ấn" and "in" in Vietnamese) specifically refers to the imprint created by the seal, as well as appearing in combination with other morphemes in words related to any printing, as in the word "印刷", "printing", pronounced "yìnshuā" in Mandarin, "insatsu" in Japanese. In the western world, Asian seals were traditionally known by traders as chop marks or simply chops, a term adapted from the Hindi chapa and the Malay cap, meaning stamp or rubber stamps.

In Japan, seals, referred to as or , have historically been used to identify individuals involved in government and trading from ancient times. The Japanese emperors, shōguns, and samurai had their personal seals pressed onto edicts and other public documents to show authenticity and authority. Even today, Japanese citizens' companies regularly use name seals for the signing of a contract and other important paperwork.

History

Origin legends and early history

Throughout Chinese history, seals have played an important part and are known to have been used both by government authorities and private individuals for thousands of years. The earliest known examples of seals in ancient China date to the Shang dynasty () and were discovered at archaeological sites at Anyang. During the reign of the second Yuan emperor, Temür Khan, the Mongols claimed to have acquired the Seal Transmitting the State. They used it as a sign of their legitimacy; it continued to be used during the Northern Yuan dynasty period. According to Dr. Phan Thanh Hải, Director of the Huế Monuments Conservation Centre, at the end of the Nguyễn dynasty period the Purple Forbidden City in Huế contained a total of 93 jade and gold seals of which 2 seals were from the Nguyễn lords period.

The government of the Republic of China in Taiwan has continued to use traditional square seals of up to about 13 centimetres, known by a variety of names depending on the user's hierarchy. Part of the inaugural ceremony for the President of the Republic of China includes bestowing on them the Seal of the Republic of China and the Seal of Honor.

In China, the Seal of the People's Government of the People's Republic of China was a square bronze seal with side length of 9 centimetres. Its inscription reads "Seal of the Central People's Government of the People's Republic of China". Notably, the seal uses the relatively modern Song typeface rather than the more ancient seal scripts, and the seal is called a yìn (), not a xǐ (). Government seals in the People's Republic of China today are usually circular in shape, and have a five-pointed star in the centre of the circle. The name of the governmental institution is arranged around the star in a semicircle – a form also adopted by some company chops.

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File:Official text seal of National Taiwan University.svg|The official seal of National Taiwan University in Taiwan ()

File:中華民國之璽.svg|The Seal of the Republic of China ()

File:Seal of the People’s Government of the People’s Republic of China.svg|The Seal of the People's Government of the People's Republic of China ()

File:Seal of the President of the Republic of Vietnam (1955–1963).svg|The seal of the president of the First Republic of Vietnam under Ngô Đình Diệm (1955–1963). Notice that its inscription is completely written in Latin script without diacritics.

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Government officials

Government bureaucrats would receive office seals that served as a status token of both their office and authority.

Lisa Lim of the South China Morning Post stated in 2016 that often Hong Kongers are asked to use the word "stamp" instead of chop in formal writing so non-Hong Kongers may understand.

Japanese usage

thumb|[[Titanium seals made in Japan: a square seal for corporations (left), a seal for bank accounts (bottom right), and a general use seal (top right).]]

thumb|upright=.8|Ready-made inkan with the name "Kawamura" (河村).

In Japan, seals in general are referred to as or . Inkan is the most comprehensive term; hanko tends to refer to seals used on less important documents.

The first evidence of writing in Japan is a hanko dating from AD 57, made of solid gold given to the ruler of Nakoku by Emperor Guangwu of Han, called King of Na gold seal. At first, only the Emperor and his most trusted vassals held hanko, as they were a symbol of the Emperor's authority. Noble people began using their own personal hanko after 750&nbsp;AD, and samurai began using them at some time during the Feudal Period. Samurai were permitted exclusive use of red ink. Chinese style seals were also utilized by the Ryūkyū Kingdom. After modernization began in 1870, hanko came into general use throughout Japanese society.

Government offices and corporations usually have inkan specific to their bureau or company and follow the general rules outlined for jitsuin with the following exceptions. In size, they are comparatively large, measuring across. Their handles are often ornately carved with friezes of mythical beasts or hand-carved hakubun inscriptions that might be quotes from literature, names and dates, or original poetry. The Privy Seal of Japan is an example; weighing over 3.55&nbsp;kg and measuring 9.09&nbsp;cm it is used for official purposes by the Emperor.

Some seals have been carved with square tunnels from handle to underside, so that a person can slide their inkan into the hollow, thus signing a document with both their name and the business's (or bureau's) name. These seals are usually stored in jitsuin-style boxes under high security except at official ceremonies, at which they are displayed on ornate stands or in their boxes.

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File:King of Na gold seal imprint.svg|The King of Na gold seal

File:Seal of the Ryukyu Kingdom.svg|Royal Seal of the Ryūkyū Kingdom.

File:Gyomei kokuji.svg|The State Seal of Japan

File:Gyoji.svg|The Privy Seal of Japan

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For personal use, there are at least four kinds of seals. In order from most to least formal/official, they are jitsuin, ginkō-in, mitome-in, and gagō-in.

Discouragement

During 2020, the Japanese government has been attempting to discourage the use of seals, because the practice requires generation of paper documents that interfere with electronic record-keeping and slow digital communications. The delay has been most pressing in infectious disease reporting during the COVID-19 pandemic: officials found it took up to three days between a case of COVID-19 being discovered and it being reported to the public. Japanese prime minister Yoshihide Suga had set the digitalization of the bureaucracy and ultimately of Japan's entire society as a key priority. He aimed to establish a new digital agency to put the idea into practice. Ministries were urged to end hanko requirements for 785 types of procedure, 96% of the total, including tax documents. Most business people favoured discontinuing hanko, but half considered that it would be difficult to do so. Politicians also opposed discontinuing their regional hand-carved hanko—a "symbol of Japan".

Korean usage

thumb|Bronze Korean seal, dated between 935 and 1392

The seal was first introduced to Korea in approximately 2nd century BC. The remaining oldest record of its usage in Korea is that kings of Buyeo used a royal seal (oksae; ) which bore the inscription of Seal of the King of Ye (). The use of seals became popular during the Three Kingdoms of Korea period.

In the case of State Seals in monarchic Korea, there were two types in use: Gugin (국인, 國印) which was conferred by the Emperor of China to Korean kings, with the intent of keeping relations between two countries as brothers (Sadae). This was used only in communications with China and for the coronation of kings. Others, generally called eobo (어보, 御寶) or eosae (어새, 御璽), are used in foreign communications with countries other than China, and for domestic uses. Seals were also used by government officials in documents. These types of seals were called gwanin (관인, 官印) and it was supervised by specialist officials. With the declaration of establishment of Republic of Korea in 1948, its government created a new State Seal, guksae (국새, 國璽) and it is used in promulgation of constitution, designation of cabinet members and ambassadors, conference of national orders and important diplomatic documents.

Seals are still commonly used in South Korea. Most Koreans have personal seals, and every government agency and commercial corporation has its own seals to use in public documents. While signing is also accepted, many Koreans think it is more formal to use seals in public documents. In 2008, the Constitutional Court of South Korea upheld a Supreme court judgement that a signed handwritten will without a registered seal was invalid. Korean seals are made of wood, jade, or sometimes ivory for more value. State Seals were generally made of gold or high-quality jade. There are rare cases of bronze or steel seals.

Personal seals

Personal seals () in Korea can be classified by their legal status. Ingam (인감, 印鑑) or sirin (실인, 實印), meaning registered seal, is a seal which has been registered by a local office, attested by a "certificate of seal registration", () a document required for most significant business transactions and civil services.

The legal system of registered seals was introduced by the Japanese colonial government in 1914. While it was scheduled to be completely replaced by an electronic certification system in 2013 in order to counter fraud, ingam still remains an official means of verification for binding legal agreement and identification. The government passed the 'Act on Confirmation, etc. of Personal Signature (본인서명사실 확인 등에 관한 법률)' in 2012, which gives registered handwritten signatures the same legal effect as ingam.

While ingam is used on important business, other dojangs are used for everyday purposes, such as less-significant official transactions. Thus most Koreans have more than two seals.

In traditional arts, as in China and Japan, an artist of Chinese calligraphy and paintings would use seals (generally leisure seals and studio seals) to identify their work. These types of seals were called Nakkwan (낙관, 落款). As seal-carving was also considered a form of art, many artists carved their own seals. Seals of Joseon-period calligraphist and natural historian Kim Jung-hee (aka Wandang or Chusa) are considered to be antiques.

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File:Kim Il Sung Seal.png|The Seal of Kim Il Sung, published in his autobiography With the Century

File:Seal of the People's Committee for North Korea.svg|The seal of the People's Committee of North Korea

File:Seal of South Korea.svg|The Seal of the Republic of Korea

File:Seal of the Republic of Korea (1949–1962).svg|The first Seal of the Republic of Korea (1949–1962)

File:Seal of the President of South Korea.svg|The Seal of the President of South Korea

File:Seal of the President of South Korea (Hanja).svg|Former seal of the President of South Korea (Hanja)

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Mongolian usage

While Chinese-style seals are typically used in China, Japan, and Korea, they are occasionally used outside East Asia. For example, the rulers of the Ilkhanate, a Mongol khanate established by Hulagu Khan in Persia, used seals containing Chinese characters in their diplomatic letters, such as the letter from Arghun to French King Philip IV and the letter from Ghazan to Pope Boniface VIII. These seals were sent by the emperors of the Yuan dynasty, a Mongol-ruled dynasty of China, especially by Kublai Khan and his successor Emperor Chengzong. Other local, non-Mongol rulers, such as Jamaluddin Abu-Is'haq, the Injuid ruler of Shiraz, also had a chinese-style square seals, but with perso-arabic written on then. In that era, a specific script style called "Seal Kufic" was developed under the suzereignty of the Mongol Emperor.

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File:Guyuk khan's Stamp 1246.jpg|Seal of Güyük Khan using the classical Mongolian script, as found in a letter sent to the Roman Pope Innocent IV in 1246

File:GhazanSeal1302LetterToBonifaceVIII.JPG|Seal of Ilkhan Ghazan, reading "王府定國理民之寶" in archaic "nine-fold" Chinese script, meaning "Seal certifying the authority of his Royal Highness to establish a country and govern its people"

File:Seal of Bogd Khan.svg|The seal of the Bogd Khan of Mongolia

File:State seal of Mongolia.svg|The state seal of Mongolia

File:Seal of Abu Ishaq Inju (14th Century.png|Perso-Arabic seal of Abu Ishaq Inju, a local sovereign ruling Region of Persia, son of a former land steward official of the Mongolain Khan.

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Singaporean usage

The seal has been present in all Singapore dollar banknotes since its first series, bearing the chairman of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) or the Board of Commissioners of Currency, Singapore (BCCS).

Vietnamese usage

The seal is used to a lesser extent in Vietnam by authorised organisations and businesses, and also traditional Vietnamese artists. It was more common in Vietnam prior to French rule and the abolition of the Nguyễn dynasty, when signatures became the usual practice, although usually seen as having less authority in a corporate environment. Modern Vietnamese organizations and agencies have switched to using circular seals with red ink and the organization's full name being inscribed in standard Vietnamese, with some incorporating monochromatic state emblem (for national authorities) or logo, with the traditional square forms having been popularly neglected.

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File:Heirloom seal of the Nguyễn Dynasty.svg|Đại Nam thụ thiên vĩnh mệnh truyền quốc tỷ (大南受天永命傳國璽), the National Seal of the Nguyễn Dynasty (1846–1945)

File:Sceau du Conseil secret - Cơ Mật Viện (機密院) 01.jpg|The seal of the Viện cơ mật with transliterations on the right to both the Traditional Chinese (regular) and Latin scripts

File:Chairman Hồ Chí Minh's business card sent as a diplomatic document to Chairman Mao Zedong - 中國國家博物館.jpg|Hồ Chí Minh ấn (胡志明印), the personal seal of the North Vietnamese president Hồ Chí Minh appearing on his business card

File:Seal of the Minister of National Defence of the State of Viet-Nam.svg|Great Seal of the Ministry of National Defence of the State of Vietnam with inscription of "國防縂長" ()

File:Hội đồng Nguyễn Phúc Tộc Việt Nam seal (2021).png|The seal of the Hội đồng Nguyễn Phúc tộc Việt Nam (2021)

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See also

  • Wu Qiuyan
  • The Eight Masters of Xiling and the Xiling Seal Art Society
  • Cash seal
  • Heirloom Seal of the Realm
  • Huaya
  • Kaō
  • Knob carving
  • Side carving
  • Seal script

Notes

References

Citations

Sources

  • Kong Yunbai 孔雲白, Zhuanke Rumen 篆刻入門. Shanghai Book Publishings 上海書店印行: Shanghai, 1936.
  • Qu Leilei, Chinese Calligraphy. Cico Books Ltd.: London, 2002.
  • Wang Jia-nan; Cai Xiaoli and Young, Dawn; The Complete Oriental Painting Course: A structured, practical guide to painting skills and techniques of China and the Far East. Quarto Publishing plc. and Aurum Press: London, 1997.
  • Wren, Christopher S. Chinese Chops: A Signature in Stone . New York Times. 10 February 1985.
  • Masterpieces of Japanese Prints: Ukiyo-e from the Victoria and Albert Museum by Rupert Faulkner, Basil William Robinson, Richard Lane, Victoria and Albert Museum
  • Chinese Seals at China Online Museum
  • The Art of Chinese Chop (Seal Carving)
  • History of Chinese Seal Carvings
  • Art-Virtue.com History of Chinese seal making
  • A chop is necessary for approving decisions relating to the operations and management of a company in China.
  • Introduction to Chinese Seal Carving
  • Seal culture still remains in electronic commerce
  • HANKO (Daniel Semo, 20 July 2021) - 99% Invisible, Episode #451