Monumental Chinese Carved Stone Calligraphy Wall Panel, Hundred Shou Inspired Cryptogram

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Monumental Chinese-style carved stone calligraphy wall panel inspired by archaic Chinese seal script and the traditional Hundred Shou motif, featuring … Read more Monumental Chinese-style carved stone calligraphy wall panel inspired by archaic Chinese seal script and the traditional Hundred Shou motif, featuring seven vertical rows of deeply incised, darkened symbols within a classical Greek key fret border. Designed to mimic the appearance of archaic Chinese calligraphic art, the elongated geometric glyphs create the convincing impression of an ancient Asian inscription. Measuring an impressive 35" × 47", the substantial stone panel has the scale and graphic presence of an architectural fragment. Warm neutral stone, blackened carving and a naturally aged surface reinforce its Chinese antiquarian character and make it particularly effective in a library, study, entry or collected interior.

AND THE INSCRIPTION? It isn't quite what it appears to be. The mysterious symbols are actually a cryptogram concealing a rather unexpected message—the secret of which is revealed in the Collector's Note below.

COLLECTOR'S NOTE
The inscription isn't what it first appears to be. Although styled to resemble archaic Chinese calligraphy and the Hundred Shou tradition, the symbols actually form a substitution cipher concealing a familiar passage by one of the most celebrated writers in the English language. Once decoded, they reveal Shakespeare's Hamlet: “To be, or not to be, that is the question...”
That unexpected collision of Chinese visual tradition, literary history, puzzle-making and decorative art is what makes the panel so intriguing. From across the room it has the presence of an ancient Chinese inscription; only on closer examination does the wonderfully clever English-language secret emerge.

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Complete Translation: "TO BE OR NOT TO BE THAT IS THE QUESTION WHETHER TIS NOBLER IN THE MIND TO SUFFER THE SLINGS AND ARROWS OF OUTRAGEOUS FORTUNE OR TO TAKE ARMS AGAINST A SEA OF TROUBLES AND BY OPPOSING END THEM" See less