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Cai Xiang (Chinese:蔡襄;pinyin:Cài Xiāng;Wade–Giles:Ts'ai Hsiang) (1012–1067) was a Chinese calligrapher, politician, structural engineer, and poet.^[1] Along withSu Shi,Huang Tingjian andMi Fu, Cai Xiang is typically regarded as one of the Four Great Masters of theSong dynasty.

He was born during the Dazhongxiangfu (大中祥符)era of the Song dynasty in Xianyou (仙游) county of Xinghua (興化) prefecture, nowXianyou County inPutian ofFujian province.

In the eight year of the Tiansheng (天聖) era (1030 CE) he obtained the degree ofjinshi (進士, lit. "advanced scholar"), a graduate who passed the triennial court exam. His highest rank was Secretariat Drafter of the Duanming Court (Duanmingdian Xueshi), in charge of written communication of the imperial government. During the Qingli (慶曆) era (1041–1048 CE), he was the Officer of Transportation (Zhuanyunshi) in Fujian. While acting as a prefect in Fujian, he also was in charge of overseeing the construction of the Wan-an Bridge atQuanzhou.

He pioneered the manufacturing of smallDragon Tribute Tea Cake of superlative quality, as it was reputed to be harder to obtain than gold.

Cai Xiang'sstyle name was Junmo (君謨), and hisposthumous name was Zhonghuei (忠惠).

One of his most famous publications is his essay "The Record of Tea", also known as the "Tea Note", which he wrote in 1049–1053.

• Calligraphy: Wan'an Bridge Report Tablet
• Poetry: Collected Works of Cai Zhonghuei
• Letter: Letter on Cheng Xin Tang Paper

Tea has intrinsic aroma. But tribute tea manufacturers like to mix small amount ofDryobalanops aromatica camphor, supposedly to enhance the aroma. The local people of Jian'an never mix any incense into tea, afraid to robe the natural aroma of tea.

• Lu Yu (733–804), writer of "The Classic of Tea"

Media related toCai Xiang at Wikimedia Commons

• 1012 births
• 1067 deaths
• 11th-century Chinese calligraphers
• 11th-century Chinese poets
• 11th-century Chinese artists
• 11th-century architects
• Chinese architects
• Artists from Fujian
• Chinese structural engineers
• Chinese tea masters
• Engineers from Fujian
• People from Putian
• Poets from Fujian
• Song dynasty calligraphers
• Song dynasty poets

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