An inscribed tianhuang mountain-form seal by Wang Fu'an, Republican period 民國 王福厂刻田黃山形印

The seal features a naturalistic small boulder-shaped knob, with the body finely carved with delicate clouds and water. The stone is of an attractive yellow-chestnut tone with a warm and smooth texture. The seal face is carved with two verses taken from a Tang poem, Farewell to a Revered Monk, composed by Liu Changqing; the verses can be translated as:

'A lone cloud sends off a flight of wild cranes,

How could the temporal be the place for them?'

Compare with a related tianhuang seal of similar design, sold in these rooms, 10th April 2006, lot 1695.

Wang Fu’an (1880-1960), one of the founders of the Xiling Seal Art Society, was initially named Shouqi, styled Weiji, and later renamed Zhi, with the courtesy name Fu’an. In his teens, Wang had been known for his calligraphy and exceptional seal carving skills, and was fond of collecting antique seals. With an extensive collection, he referred to himself as a Yinyong, literally a servant to seals. 

此印鈕隨形作小山子式，印身雕薄意雲水紋，色如黃栗，質地溫潤。印文詩句取自唐代詩人劉長卿《送上人》。參考一方相關田黃印，印鈕亦作山子形，售於香港蘇富比2006年4月10日，編號1695。 

王福厂（1880-1960年），西泠印社創始人之一，初名壽祺，字維季，後更名禔，字福庵，一作福厂。王福厂幼承家學，於文字訓詁、詩文，皆富修養。十餘歲即以工書法篆刻聞於時，好蓄青田舊石，所藏極富，自稱「印傭」。