maozhang.net
Loyalty - freehand variations
Non-calligraphic inscriptions on Maozhang were generally engraved with neat standard characters; but when the loyalty character (zhong) was placed in the reverse depression, it was rendered in a wide variety of "scripts".
Whether copied from other sources or the spontaneous creations of individual die engravers, this variety (and the freedom of choice that can be inferred) represents a facet of Cultural Revolution culture seemingly at odds with the uniformity that conventionally characterises the period.
