落款

luòkuǎn
noun #37,001

Meanings

  1. 1 inscription on a painting / calligraphy / letter (with name, date, dedication)
  2. 2 to write such an inscription

Examples

Zhè fú huà de luòkuǎn shì Qí Báishí.
The signature on this painting is Qi Baishi.
Qǐng zài huà de yòuxià jiǎo luòkuǎn.
Please add your signature in the bottom-right corner of the painting.
Zhè fēng xìn méiyǒu luòkuǎn, bù zhīdào shì shéi xiě de.
This letter has no signature, so we don't know who wrote it.

Tips

culture
落款 is the colophon block on a Chinese painting or piece of calligraphy: it usually includes the date, the artist's name, sometimes the recipient ( 'top inscription'), and a red seal (印章 yìnzhāng). here means 'to drop / set down', not 'to fall' — you 'set down' the inscription in the corner. Verifying the 落款 is the first thing experts do when authenticating Chinese art.
memory
Think of it as 'dropping' () a 'paragraph / item' () at the end of your work — like the artist's equivalent of a signature line.

Stroke Order

luò
kuǎn