The Lanting Xu (蘭亭序) is the most famous work of calligraphy by Wan Xizhi, composed in year 353. Written in semi-cursive script, it is the most well-known and well-copied piece ever. It describes a gathering of 42 literati including Xie An and Sun Chuo at the Orchid Pavilion near Shaoxing, Zhejiang, during the Spring Purification Festival to compose poems and enjoy the wine. The gentlemen had engaged in a drinking contest: wine cups were floated down a small winding creek as the men sat along its banks; whenever a cup stopped, the man closest to the cup was required to empty it and write a poem. In the end, twenty-six of the participants composed thirty-seven poems.
The preface consists of 324 Chinese characters in 28 lines. The character zhi (之) appears 20 times, but no two look the same. It is also a celebrated work ofliterature, flowing rhythmically and giving rise to several Chinese idioms. It is a piece of improvisation, as can be seen from the revisions in the text.
Emperor Taizong of Tang liked Wans calligraphy so much that he ordered a search for the original copy of Lanting Xu. According to legend, the original copy was passed down to successive generations in the Wan family in secrecy until the monk Zhiyong, dying without an heir, left it to the care of a disciple monk,Biancai.
Numerous tracing copies and other forms of duplications such as rubbings exist today.