Side carving (original) (raw)

Side carving (simplified Chinese: 边刻; traditional Chinese: 邊刻; pinyin: biānkè) is a form of traditional seal carving techniques that originated in ancient China. It was later introduced to other countries in East Asia and has gained popularity among contemporary seal artists from regions including Hong Kong, South Korea, Japan, Singapore, etc. It mainly focuses on developing pattern design skills and techniques applied to the carving of side surfaces of a seal, which distinguishes itself as a unique carving technique from knob carving (head part) and face carving (bottom part). It decorates the side surfaces of seals with literal or pictorial imagery.