Chinese calligraphy

Chinese script is a primitive language that has by supreme conservatism survived into modern times. It has no spelling, no grammar, and is not even part of speech, but about 50,000 characters representing 50,000 different ideas.

Each character is made up from one to seventeen strokes, and these strokes must be executed in the fixed order. This fixed placement gives only tiny possibility for variation, but so acute is the Chinese perception that even subtle changes can distinguish one style from another.