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Chinese Calligraphy · Unit 4 · Lesson 12 · 書法 單元四 第十二課

What Are the Red Seals on a Work of Calligraphy?印章與篆刻:作品上的紅色印章是什麼?

A finished work of calligraphy is black and white, with a few small squares of red. They are seals. Watch a seal show its face, dip into red paste, and print in 3D; find out why the face must be carved backward; tell red-character seals from white-character seals; and design a seal of your own.
一件寫好的書法作品是黑白的,上面有幾個小小的紅色方塊——那是印章。在 3D 裡看印章把印面翻給你看、蘸印泥、蓋在紙上;弄懂印面為什麼要反著刻;分辨朱文和白文;再設計一方自己的印。

Big idea · 一句話看懂

A seal is a small block with characters carved on its face. Pressed into red paste and then onto paper, it prints the artist's name or a favorite phrase. Stamping flips left and right, so the face is carved as a mirror image. Raised characters print red, and cut-in characters print white.
印章是一小塊刻了字的材料。蘸上紅色的印泥再蓋在紙上,就印出作者的名字或喜歡的句子。蓋印會把左右翻過來,所以印面要反著刻。凸起來的字蓋出來是紅的(朱文),凹下去的字蓋出來是白的(白文)。

3D Model · 3D 模型

The Face Is Backward, the Print Is Not 印面是反的,蓋出來才是正的

Drag to turn, and scroll or pinch to zoom. Press Stamp it: the seal shows you its face, dips into the red paste, and prints on the paper. Change the character, switch between red and white characters, and then try carving the face “the way you read it” to see what goes wrong.
拖曳可以旋轉,滾輪或雙指可以縮放。按「蓋印」:印章先把印面翻給你看,再蘸印泥,蓋在紙上。可以換字、換朱文或白文,再試試「照正的刻」,看看會出什麼問題。

Drag to turn · 拖曳旋轉 Scroll or pinch to zoom · 滾輪/雙指縮放

This 3D model needs WebGL, which this browser does not support. The reading, the cards, the game, the seal designer, and the practice pad below still work.
這個瀏覽器不支援 WebGL,無法顯示 3D 模型;下方的課文、卡片、小遊戲、設計印章和練字板一樣能用。

  • Red: seal paste
    紅色:印泥
  • Yellow label: the face of the seal
    黃色標籤:印面
  • The character on the seal is in small seal script
    印面上的字是小篆

A teaching model. The seal, the paste, and the paper are our own simple shapes, and the seal is drawn larger than most real ones. The characters on the seal are our own tracings of small seal script from Lesson 5. The speckles in the print only suggest that paste never prints perfectly evenly. The character 永 on the paper is the regular-script model from Lesson 3.
這是教學用的示意模型。印章、印泥和紙都是我們畫的簡單造型,印章畫得比一般的印大。印面上的字是第五課我們自己描的小篆。印文上的小白點只是示意:印泥不會蓋得完全均勻。紙上的「永」是第三課的楷書範字。

Model and seal drawings are drawn and programmed by My Culture Connect; the seal-script characters are our own tracings from Lesson 5. · 模型與印章圖樣由人師教育協會自繪、自寫;小篆字形是第五課自己描的。

Reading · 英文閱讀

12

Unit 12: What Are the Red Seals on a Work of Calligraphy?

Look at a finished work of calligraphy. The characters are black and the paper is pale, but somewhere, often near the writer's name, there are small squares of red. They are the prints of seals.

看看一件寫好的書法作品。字是黑的,紙是淺色的,可是在某個地方——常常在作者名字的旁邊——有幾個小小的紅色方塊。那是印章蓋出來的印。

A seal is a small block, often of stone, with characters carved on one end. That end is called the face. The writer presses the face into a thick red paste and then onto the paper. The print says who made the work, or adds a few words the writer loves.

印章是一小塊材料,常常是石頭,其中一頭刻了字,那一面叫印面。作者把印面按進濃稠的紅色印泥,再蓋在紙上。蓋出來的印告訴大家這件作品是誰寫的,或是加上幾個作者喜歡的字。

Here is the strange part. If you look at the face of a seal, the characters are backward. Stamping flips left and right, like a mirror. So the carver writes the characters in mirror image, and the print comes out the right way round.

奇怪的地方來了:仔細看印面,上面的字是反的。蓋印會把左右翻過來,就像照鏡子一樣。所以刻印的人要把字反著寫上去,蓋出來才會是正的。

There are two ways to carve. In a red-character seal, the carver cuts away everything except the lines, so the lines stand up and print in red. In a white-character seal, the carver cuts only the lines, so they stay white inside a block of red.

刻法有兩種。「朱文」是把線條以外的地方都刻掉,線條凸出來,蓋出來字是紅的。「白文」是只把線條刻掉,蓋出來是一塊紅色,字留白。

Most seals use seal script, the old script with even, curving lines. That is where its English name comes from. Seals are far older than paper. Long ago, letters were written on strips of bamboo or wood, tied shut, and closed with a lump of clay. The sender pressed a seal into the clay, so nobody could open the letter in secret.

印章大多用篆書——線條勻稱、彎彎的古老字體;篆書的英文名字 seal script 就是這樣來的。印章比紙古老得多。很久以前,信寫在竹片或木片上,綁好以後,在繩結上按一團泥,寄信的人再把印章蓋在泥上(封泥),這樣就沒有人能偷偷拆開。

Seals are still part of life in Taiwan. Many people have a small seal with their name on it, and the law says that a seal used in place of a signature counts the same as signing. In this lesson, stamp a seal in 3D, play red or white, and design a seal of your own.

在台灣,印章到今天還是生活的一部分。很多人有一顆刻著自己名字的小印章;法律也規定,用印章代替簽名,效力和簽名一樣。這一課,在 3D 裡蓋一方印,玩「朱文還是白文?」,再設計一方自己的印。
Read aloud · 課文朗讀

Questions · 閱讀理解

Why are the characters on the face of a seal carved backward?

Because stamping flips left and right, like a mirror. A mirror-image face prints the right way round.

What is the difference between a red-character seal and a white-character seal?

In a red-character seal the lines stand up and print in red. In a white-character seal the lines are cut in, so they stay white inside a block of red.

Before paper, what did people press their seals into?

A lump of clay that closed a tied bundle of bamboo or wooden strips.

Words & Phrases · 生字及片語

seal(n.)印章;封印The letter had a red wax seal on the back.那封信的背面有一個紅色的蠟封。stamp(v. / n.)蓋(印);郵票The librarian stamped the date in my book.圖書館員在我的書上蓋了日期。mirror(n.)鏡子Words look backward in a mirror.鏡子裡的字看起來是反的。backward(adv.)反過來;倒著Can you say the alphabet backward?你能把字母倒著唸嗎?paste(n.)糊狀物;醬Mix the flour and water into a thick paste.把麵粉和水拌成濃稠的糊。raised(adj.)凸起的The coin has raised letters around the edge.這枚硬幣的邊緣有凸起來的字。signature(n.)簽名Please put your signature at the bottom of the form.請在表格最下面簽名。clay(n.)黏土;泥We made small bowls out of clay.我們用黏土做了幾個小碗。

Quick Check · 小測驗

1. What are the small red squares on a work of calligraphy?

2. How are the characters carved on the face of a seal?

3. In a red-character seal, which part prints red?

4. Which script do most seals use?

5. Long ago, what closed a tied bundle of bamboo strips?

Two Kinds · 兩種刻法

Red characters and white characters 朱文和白文

All four show 馬 (horse) in small seal script. Tap a card to see it happen in 3D.
四張卡都是小篆的「馬」。點卡片,在模型裡看它怎麼蓋出來。

Red-character seal朱文

Lines stand up · also called yang characters · 線條凸出來・也叫陽文

Everything except the lines is cut away. The raised lines pick up the paste, so the characters print red.
線條以外的地方都刻掉。凸起來的線條沾到印泥,蓋出來字是紅的。

White-character seal白文

Lines are cut in · also called yin characters · 線條凹下去・也叫陰文

Only the lines are cut away. The paste cannot reach them, so they stay white inside a block of red.
只把線條刻掉。印泥沾不到凹下去的線條,蓋出來是一塊紅色、字留白。

The face印面

A mirror image · 字是反的

This is what the carver cuts. Compare it with the first card: left and right are swapped.
這是刻印的人刻出來的樣子。和第一張卡比一比:左右相反。

Carved the wrong way刻錯了

Face carved the way you read it · 印面照正的刻

If the face is carved the way you read it, the print comes out backward, like this.
如果印面照正的刻,蓋出來就是反的,像這樣。

Game · 小遊戲

Red Characters or White Characters? 朱文還是白文?

Here is the print of a seal. Are the characters red, with the paper showing around them? Or are they white, inside a block of red? Eight rounds.
這是一方印蓋出來的樣子。字是紅的、周圍露出紙?還是字是白的、在一塊紅色裡面?一共八題。

Right on the first try一次就答對0 / 8

Make One · 動手做

Design Your Own Seal 設計自己的印

Choose a character, the kind of seal, and the shape. The left picture shows the face you would carve; the right picture shows what it prints. You can save the print as a picture.
選一個字、朱文或白文、方的或圓的。左邊是你要刻的印面,右邊是蓋出來的樣子。可以把印存成圖片。

Carve this · 照這樣刻the face is a mirror image · 印面是反的
It prints this · 蓋出來是這樣red seal paste on paper · 紙上的印泥
Character · 字
Kind · 種類
Shape · 形狀

  1. Look at 馬, 人, or 月: the face and the print are mirror images of each other.看「馬」「人」或「月」:印面和蓋出來的印,左右正好相反。
  2. Now choose 山 or 日. They are almost the same on both sides, so the flip is hard to see.再選「山」或「日」。它們左右幾乎對稱,所以看不太出來有沒有翻過來。
  3. Switch between red and white characters. Which one would be more work to carve?切換朱文和白文。哪一種刻起來比較費工?

On a Real Work · 真的作品上

A letter of four lines, crowded with seals 只有四行字的信,蓋滿了印

This is Wang Xizhi's snow letter from Lesson 10. The black writing is only four lines. Everything red was added later by emperors and collectors who owned it, each one leaving a seal to say “this passed through my hands.”
這是第十課看過的〈快雪時晴帖〉。黑色的字只有四行;紅色的都是後來擁有過它的皇帝和收藏家蓋上去的,每一方印都在說:「這件作品經過我的手。」

Timely Clearing After Snowfall, with many red seals around four lines of writing · 〈快雪時晴帖〉:四行字的周圍蓋了許多紅色的印
Collectors' seals鑑藏印

The dictionary calls these collector's seals: seals on a work that show it was examined and kept by the person who stamped it. The museum's record for this letter lists dozens of them, including seals of the Qianlong Emperor. Can you find a white-character seal and a red-character seal?
教育部辭典說「鑑藏印」是「蓋在書畫上的印章。表示作品經過鈐印者的鑑定收藏」。故宮為這件作品記錄的印有好幾十種,其中包括乾隆皇帝的印。你找得到一方白文印和一方朱文印嗎?

晉王羲之快雪時晴帖 冊。國立故宮博物院,台北,CC BY 4.0 @ www.npm.gov.tw(經裁切)

Practice Pad · 練字板

Write the seal-script characters 寫寫看印面上的小篆

Before carving, the carver writes the characters. Trace these six in small seal script. Seal-script lines stay the same width from beginning to end, so keep a slow, even speed.
刻印之前要先寫字。描寫這六個小篆。小篆的線條從頭到尾一樣粗,所以速度要慢、要平均。

Character · 範字
  1. Keep every line the same width: no heavy starts and no pointed ends.每一條線都一樣粗:起筆不加重,收筆不出尖。
  2. Curves should be round and smooth, like bent wire.轉彎要圓、要順,像彎過的鐵絲。
  3. When you finish, hold your screen up to a mirror. That is what the seal face would look like.寫完以後,把螢幕拿去照鏡子——鏡子裡的樣子,就是印面的樣子。

History and Taiwan · 歷史與台灣

Clay before paper, a word kept for emperors, a jade seal in Taipei, and the seal in your drawer 紙以前的封泥、留給皇帝的字、台北的一方玉璽,和你抽屜裡的印章

Two things from old books, one treasure you can see in Taiwan, and how seals are still used here every day.
兩件古書裡的事、一件在台灣看得到的寶物,還有今天台灣人怎麼用印章。

Before Paper · 封泥

A lump of clay with a seal on it蓋在泥上的印

The dictionary explains sealing clay: before paper, messages were written on strips of bamboo or wood. To stop anyone from opening them in secret, the knot of the cord was packed with clay and stamped with a seal. A museum in Taipei shows wooden address tablets with a small slot cut to hold the clay.
教育部辭典解釋「封泥」:「古人未有紙時,以簡素傳遞信息,為防私拆,在繩結開啟處,以泥封緊,加蓋印章。」中研院史語所歷史文物陳列館展出的「檢」,就是「附有封泥槽,可加蓋封泥印章,以達密封機能之簡牘」。

A Word · 璽

The word only emperors could use只有皇帝能用的字

A Han dynasty book says that before the Qin dynasty anyone might have a seal of gold or jade, but from the Qin on, only the emperor's seal was called 璽, and only his could be made of jade. Everyone else's was simply called 印.
東漢蔡邕的《獨斷》說:「璽者印也,印者信也。」「秦以前民皆以金玉為印……秦以來天子獨以印稱璽,又獨以玉,羣臣莫敢用也。」教育部辭典也說:璽「秦以前泛指諸侯、卿大夫、從吏的印章,秦以後則專指帝王的印章」。

Taiwan · 台灣

An emperor's birthday seal, in Taipei台北故宮的「古稀天子之寶」

The National Palace Museum keeps a jade seal made for the Qianlong Emperor in 1780, the year he turned seventy. It is carved from one piece of green jade, 12.8 centimeters on each side, with two dragons on top. Its six seal-script characters mean “treasure of the Son of Heaven at seventy.”
台北故宮藏有一方乾隆皇帝的玉璽,做於乾隆四十五年(1780),那一年他七十歲。故宮說它「全器選用整塊碧玉琢製而成,印面為正方形,雙龍鈕」,長寬各 12.8 公分;「印面琢三行六字篆書:『古稀天子之寶』」。

Today · 今天

The seal in your drawer抽屜裡的印章

In Taiwan, a person can register one personal seal at the household registration office. The rules say its face must be between 1 and 3 centimeters across, and it cannot be made of rubber or other soft material that changes shape. The Civil Code says a seal used in place of a signature has the same effect as signing.
在台灣,每個人可以到戶政事務所登記一顆印鑑。規定是「以一種為限」,「印面之長、寬或直徑須 1 公分以上未逾 3 公分,且不得使用原子章或橡膠等易變形材質」。《民法》第 3 條也規定:「如有用印章代簽名者,其蓋章與簽名生同等之效力。」

Myth vs. Fact · 常見迷思

Four things people get wrong 四個常見的誤會

✗ Myth · 迷思The characters on the face of a seal read the same as the print.印面上的字和蓋出來的字是一樣的。

✓ Fact · 事實They are mirror images. Stamping flips left and right, so the carver writes the characters backward on the stone.兩者左右相反。蓋印會把左右翻過來,所以刻印的人要把字反著寫在印石上。

✗ Myth · 迷思A “red-character seal” is carved from red stone.「朱文印」是用紅色的石頭刻的。

✓ Fact · 事實The name describes the print, not the stone. In a red-character seal the lines are raised, so the characters print red. The dictionary gives the old rule: raised characters are red characters, and cut-in characters are white characters.「朱文」說的是蓋出來的樣子,不是石頭的顏色。朱文的線條凸出來,所以字蓋出來是紅的。教育部辭典引古人的話:「刻之印章,則陽文曰朱文,陰文曰白文。」

✗ Myth · 迷思In old China, only emperors had seals.古時候只有皇帝才有印章。

✓ Fact · 事實Only the word 璽 was kept for the emperor's seal, from the Qin dynasty on. Officials and ordinary people had seals too, called 印.秦以後只有「璽」這個字專指皇帝的印。官員和一般人也有印章,叫「印」。

✗ Myth · 迷思Seal paste is just red ink.印泥就是紅色的墨水。

✓ Fact · 事實It is a thick paste, not a liquid. Taiwan's school dictionary says it is made of cinnabar, oil, and mugwort fiber.印泥是濃稠的泥狀顏料,不是液體。《國語辭典簡編本》說它「用硃砂和油及艾絨製成」。

Remember It · 記憶口訣

Seals in a sentence 一句話記住印章

Backward face, forward print印面反,印文正

Stamping flips left and right.
蓋印會把左右翻過來。

Raised prints red, cut-in prints white凸的是朱文,凹的是白文

Red characters or white characters.
字是紅的,或字是白的。

Write first, then carve先寫後刻

That is why it is called seal carving.
所以叫「篆刻」。

Opening seal upper right, corner seal lower right引首章右上,壓角章右下

Where extra seals go on a work.
作品上閒章蓋的位置。

In the Classroom · 教室提醒

Before you pick up a brush 拿起毛筆之前

  • Real seal paste is made with cinnabar and oil. Do not put it near your mouth, and wash your hands after stamping.真的印泥是用硃砂和油做的。不要靠近嘴巴,蓋完印要洗手。
  • Seal paste stains clothes and is hard to wash out. Wear old clothes or an apron.印泥沾到衣服很難洗掉:穿舊衣服或圍裙。
  • Carving knives are sharp. In class, press lines into craft foam with a pencil instead of cutting stone.刻刀很利。課堂上改用鉛筆在泡棉片上壓出線條,不要刻石頭。
  • Let each print dry before you stack the papers.印乾了再把紙疊起來。

Classroom Activity 1 · 課堂活動一

A Foam Seal 泡棉印章

You need · 準備材料

  • A small square of craft foam (about 3 cm), glued to a bottle cap or a block一小塊泡棉片(大約 3 公分見方),黏在瓶蓋或小木塊上
  • Thin paper and a soft pencil薄紙和軟一點的鉛筆
  • A washable red stamp pad and white paper可水洗的紅色印台和白紙

Steps · 步驟

  1. On the thin paper, draw a square the size of your foam and write one simple character inside it, dark and thick.在薄紙上畫一個和泡棉一樣大的方框,在裡面寫一個簡單的字,寫黑一點、粗一點。
  2. Turn the paper over onto the foam and rub the back. The pencil marks move to the foam in mirror image.把紙翻過來蓋在泡棉上,在背面磨一磨。鉛筆的痕跡會反著印到泡棉上。
  3. Press the lines deep into the foam with the pencil. You have made a white-character seal.用鉛筆把線條深深地壓進泡棉裡。你做了一顆白文印。
  4. Press the seal on the stamp pad, then on white paper. Does your character read the right way?蘸印台,蓋在白紙上。你的字是正的嗎?

Start with a character that is not the same on both sides, such as 人 or 月, so you can see the flip.
先選左右不對稱的字,例如「人」或「月」,才看得出有沒有翻過來。

Classroom Activity 2 · 課堂活動二

Seal Hunters 找印章

You need · 準備材料

  • The picture of the snow letter on this page, on a screen or printed這一頁的〈快雪時晴帖〉圖片(用螢幕看或印出來)
  • A small mirror一面小鏡子

Steps · 步驟

  1. In pairs, count how many red seals you can find in two minutes.兩人一組,兩分鐘內數數看找得到幾方紅色的印。
  2. Sort them: which have red characters, and which have white characters?分類:哪些是朱文,哪些是白文?
  3. Pick one seal and hold the mirror beside it. The mirror shows what its face looks like.選一方印,把鏡子放在旁邊。鏡子裡的樣子,就是那顆印章的印面。
  4. Talk about it: why would an owner want to stamp a seal on a famous work? Would you?討論:為什麼擁有名作的人會想在上面蓋自己的印?換成是你,你會蓋嗎?

There is no single right answer to the last question. Collectors and museums think about it differently today.
最後一題沒有標準答案。今天的收藏家和博物館,想法和古人不一樣。

Sources · 資料出處

Dates, names, places, and facts on this page were checked against these sources (October 2026). · 本頁的年代、人名、地名與事實依下列資料查證(2026 年 10 月)。

  1. Seal carving: seals mostly imitate Qin and Han seals and use seal script; the characters are written first and then carved篆刻:「雕刻印章。因印章多模仿秦漢古印,採用大小篆體,先寫後刻,故稱為『篆刻』。」教育部《重編國語辭典修訂本》「篆刻」 ↗
  2. Red characters: raised characters on a seal; “raised characters are called red characters, and cut-in characters are called white characters”朱文:「印章上鐫刻凸出的文字,即陽文。」引楊慎:「刻之印章,則陽文曰朱文,陰文曰白文。」教育部《重編國語辭典修訂本》「朱文」 ↗
  3. White characters: the cut-in characters or patterns on a seal or vessel白文:「鏤刻器物或印章,所凹下的文字或花紋部分,稱為『白文』。……也稱為『陰文』。」教育部《重編國語辭典修訂本》「白文」 ↗
  4. Seal paste: a paste-like pigment made of cinnabar and oil (the school dictionary adds mugwort fiber)印泥:「蓋印時所用的泥狀顏料。用硃砂和油製成。」《國語辭典簡編本》:「用硃砂和油及艾絨製成。」教育部《重編國語辭典修訂本》「印泥」 ↗
  5. Seal paste in the school dictionary: cinnabar, oil, and mugwort fiber「蓋印章時所沾取的泥狀顏料。用硃砂和油及艾絨製成。」教育部《國語辭典簡編本》「印泥」(教育百科) ↗
  6. Sealing clay: before paper, the knot on a bundle of slips was packed with clay and stamped封泥:「古人未有紙時,以簡素傳遞信息,為防私拆,在繩結開啟處,以泥封緊,加蓋印章,故稱為『封泥』。」教育部《重編國語辭典修訂本》「封泥」 ↗
  7. A wooden tablet with a slot for sealing clay檢:「附有封泥槽,可加蓋封泥印章,以達密封機能之簡牘。」中央研究院歷史語言研究所歷史文物陳列館 ↗
  8. 璽: before the Qin, the seals of lords and officials; after the Qin, only the seals of emperors璽:「秦以前泛指諸侯、卿大夫、從吏的印章,秦以後則專指帝王的印章。」教育部《重編國語辭典修訂本》「璽」 ↗
  9. Cai Yong: “from the Qin on, only the Son of Heaven's seal was called 璽, and only his was of jade”「璽者印也,印者信也」「秦以來天子獨以印稱璽,又獨以玉,羣臣莫敢用也。」維基文庫 蔡邕《獨斷》 ↗
  10. Opening seal (upper right), corner seal (lower right), leisure seals, collector's seals, and the signature block引首章:「書法作品上鈐蓋在右上方的一種閒章。」壓角章(151963):「鈐蓋在右下方」;閒章(108043);鑑藏印(93737):「蓋在書畫上的印章。表示作品經過鈐印者的鑑定收藏。」落款(66693)教育部《重編國語辭典修訂本》「引首章」 ↗
  11. A seal on a work is proof of who made it「書家在作品上鈐印,具有證明取信之作用。」臺北市民族國小「民族小小書法家」〈落款與用印〉 ↗
  12. Timely Clearing After Snowfall: the museum's record of its inscriptions and seals〈快雪時晴帖〉典藏頁:題跋、收傳印記與鑑藏寶璽國立故宮博物院典藏資料檢索(故書000141) ↗
  13. Jade seal of the Qianlong Emperor, 1780: one piece of green jade, 12.8 cm square, two dragons on top, six seal-script characters「古稀天子之寶」玉璽:「全器選用整塊碧玉琢製而成,印面為正方形,雙龍鈕…印面琢三行六字篆書」「乾隆庚子即乾隆四十五年(1780),這年清高宗七十歲。」國立故宮博物院典藏資料檢索(故玉006652) ↗
  14. Registering a personal seal in Taiwan: one seal only; 1 to 3 cm; no rubber or other material that changes shape「申請登記之印鑑以一種為限」「印鑑章印面之長、寬或直徑須 1 公分以上未逾 3 公分,且不得使用原子章或橡膠等易變形材質。」內政部戶政司〈印鑑登記及印鑑證明業務〉 ↗
  15. Civil Code, Article 3: a seal used in place of a signature has the same effect as signing《民法》第 3 條:「如有用印章代簽名者,其蓋章與簽名生同等之效力。」全國法規資料庫 ↗
  16. Taiwan curriculum: know stories of famous calligraphers (4-Ⅱ-8); appreciate the layout and style of calligraphy (4-Ⅳ-5). Seal carving itself is not listed in the curriculum.十二年國教國語文領綱:4-Ⅱ-8「知道古今書法名家的故事。」4-Ⅳ-5「欣賞書法的行款和布局、行氣及風格。」(課綱沒有列篆刻;這一課是書法的延伸)國家教育研究院《十二年國民基本教育課程綱要 語文領域—國語文》 ↗