Various inscriptions include marks such as "Youlu" (Friends' Record). Over time, poetry borrowed from exquisite tea culture throughout the dynasties or verses expressing elegant and leisurely moods gradually came to be applied to the decoration of zisha (purple clay) wares. Examples include "Right easy ground gentle fire, clouds abundant taste Huiquan" on a Dabin-marked lotus seed pot, and "Clear breeze over the river, bright moon in the mountains" on an extra-large high-handled pot. The Ming dynasty work *Yangxian Minghu Xi* (Yangxian Teapot System) by Zhou Gaoqi records Shi Dabin's participation in pottery carving: "For inscribing marks and signatures, at first Shi Dabin would invite skilled calligraphers to apply ink, then have someone carve it with a bamboo knife, or use seal stamps. Later he came to wield the knife himself to form characters, his calligraphy leisurely and elegant." By the early Qing period, the decoration of zisha wares reached maturity with diverse craft techniques. Pottery carving was often used simultaneously with gold painting, color painting, clay painting, stamping and other methods, as seen in the Qianlong-era "Stamped Bright Tea Illustration with Imperial Poem Pot." In the mid-Qing period, the pottery carving decoration of zisha wares achieved a qualitative leap and elevation. The active participation of literati such as Chen Mansheng[1] played a major promotional role. *Yangxian Sha Hu Tu Kao* (Illustrated Study of Yangxian Sand Pots) once stated: "Famous craftsmen of the Ming and Qing dynasties who made pots often selected and carved poems by predecessors, yet without discrimination—sometimes appropriate to tea but not to the pot, or appropriate to neither tea nor pot. I have always said such verses would be better omitted. As for those who determined both pot and tea and composed appropriate zisha inscriptions for pots, this truly began with Mansheng, and the world's appreciation arose from this." They not only designed pot shapes but also integrated their cultivation in literature, epigraphy, and seal carving into the pottery carving of zisha, emphasizing the profound scholarship of inscriptions, filling zisha wares with a simple and elegant "literati flavor." In the late Qing period, another famous calligrapher, Mei Diaoding,[2] made indispensable contributions to the advancement of zisha pottery carving art. During the Tongzhi and Guangxu reigns, with financial support from friends, Mei Diaoding established the Yucheng Kiln in Ningbo's Flower City, hiring renowned zisha pot makers He Xinzhou and Wang Dongshi, and master engraver Chen Shannong to participate in creating zisha wares. Great painters and calligraphers such as Ren Bonian, Hu Gongshou, Xugu, and Wu Changshuo also participated. These zisha works featured exquisite calligraphy, meticulous carving knife techniques, and rich epigraphy flavor, possessing considerable artistic interest. Masterpieces among them include the "Broken Old Man Gourd Pot," "Bolang Hammer Pot," and "High Column Base Pot."[3] --- [1] Chen Hongshou (1768-1822), courtesy name Zigong, art names Mansheng, Laoman, Manshou, Mangong, also called Jiaguting Zhang, Xiaxi Yuyin, Zhongyu Xianke, Zhongyu Daoren, was from Qiantang, Zhejiang. He was a famous master of calligraphy, painting, and seal carving in the Qing dynasty, one of the Eight Masters of Xiling. [2] Mei Diaoding (1839-1906), courtesy name Youruzhu, art name Chiweng, was from Cixi County seat (now part of Jiangbei District, Ningbo) in the late Qing dynasty. His works *Chiweng Jijin* (Chiweng's Collection of Brocades) and *Mei Chiweng Shoushu Shangu Meihua Shi Zhenji* (Mei Chiweng's Handwritten True Copy of Shangu's Plum Blossom Poems) were published. [3] Gu Jingzhou, ed., *Yixing Zisha Zhenshang* (Appreciation of Yixing Purple Clay Treasures) (Hong Kong: Joint Publishing (H.K.) Co., Ltd., January 1992), pp. 59, 47, 76, 140-142; Xu Huping, ed., *Shahu Huishang* (Appreciation of Sand Pots) (Hong Kong: Dynasty Culture and Arts Publishing House, September 2004), p. 64.