Which calligraphy piece by Wang Xianzhi is known as one of the 'Three Xuan' treasures?

The calligraphy piece by Wang Xianzhi known as one of the “Three Xuan” treasures is Mid-autumn Tie.

Mid-autumn Tie (中秋帖), also called Zhongqiu Tie, is a short work traditionally attributed to Wang Xianzhi, the fourth-century calligrapher and seventh son of Wang Xizhi. It is written in a flowing xingcao style, combining running and cursive features, and is famous for its compact, energetic movement.

The work became one of the three celebrated Jin-dynasty calligraphic treasures collected by the Qianlong Emperor. Together with Wang Xizhi’s Kuai Xue Shi Qing Tie and Wang Xun’s Boyuan Tie, it was housed in the Qianlong-era Sanxi Hall, or Hall of the Three Rarities. “Three Xuan” is a variant or mistaken rendering sometimes encountered for this group; the established English translation is usually “Three Rarities.”

A further complication is attribution. The Palace Museum describes the piece as traditionally transmitted as Wang Xianzhi’s work, rather than treating modern attribution as completely unquestionable. That distinction is common in the study of ancient Chinese calligraphy, where later copies and transformations often survive instead of an author’s uncontested original.