Why is China reviving the ancient art of calligraphy?
Our weekly podcast on China. This week, we examine the Communist Party’s push to bring back an art form it once tried to erase
Calligraphy was once China’s highest art form—then the Communist Party tried to erase it. Now, under Xi Jinping, it’s making a comeback.
At Sotheby’s in Hong Kong, a rare copy of the Orchid Pavilion preface, one of China’s most famous calligraphic works, is up for auction. Rosie Blau, co-host of our daily news podcast, The Intelligence, is there to witness the bidding war—but will it sell? And beyond the auction room, why is the Communist Party so invested in calligraphy’s return?
Explore more
Babbage
The Large Hadron Collider is on the verge of its most important decade
Our podcast on science and technology. We meet the next boss of CERN and take a tour of the biggest experiment in physics. What’s in store for the next chapter of the supercollider?
35:48
The Intelligence
Donald Trump’s Congress address was more pomp than policy
Also on the daily podcast: Ecuador’s intrepid investigator and board games v AI
28:18
Editor’s picks
Why Diana Salazar might be Latin America’s bravest woman
A handpicked article read aloud from the latest issue of The Economist
08:29
Drum Tower
The Chinese tech hotspot that birthed DeepSeek
Our weekly podcast on China. This week, we travel to China’s Silicon Valley to visit a university modelled on Stanford that lies at the heart of a thriving tech ecosystem
24:25
The Intelligence
What will America’s pause in military aid mean for Ukraine?
Also on the daily podcast: the stablecoin craze and the Louvre’s fashion gala
22:36
Editor’s picks
Why inheritocracy is a danger to capitalism
A handpicked article read aloud from the latest issue of The Economist
07:44