We have many options to create artwork with Samurai characters on a wall scroll or portrait.
If you want to create a cool Samurai Asian character tattoo, just email us and we'll help you select from many forms of ancient Asian symbols that express the idea of samurai.



The Code of the Samurai
Sometimes called “The Seven Virtues of the Samurai" or “The Bushido Code".
In Chinese it would be defined as “The Way of the Warrior" or “The Warrior's Code".
It's a set of virtues that the Samurai of Japan and ancient warriors of China had to live and die by.
See our page with just Code of the Samurai / Bushido here
See Also... Warrior


In feudal Japan, ninja or shinobi (literally, "one who is concealed" or "one that endures") were sometimes assassins and agents of espionage. The ninja, like samurai, followed their own special code of conduct.
The role of the ninja has been romanticized in many American movies (and to a lesser extent in Japanese movies). Because the ninja-craze has taken off in the west, Japan has followed the trend and you'll see plenty of ninja-related imagery in Japan.
Note that when writing this as Kanji, Japanese will tend to write the first character in the form shown to the right. If you select our Japanese master calligrapher, please expect that form. Our Chinese calligraphers can also write it in the Japanese form, but only if you request it (in the special instructions about your order during checkout).


The Ronin have no master - The most famous are the 47 ronin created after their Lord committed suicide. This term was not exactly a positive title for the Samurai of ancient Japan. However, in recent years, movies and video games have glorified the term Ronin.
In Chinese, this term has the original meaning of a hobo, vagabond or ruffian.
In Korean Hanja, these characters would be read as adventurer, wanderer, someone without a steady job, or someone who is wasting away time.
In modern Japan, this term is used as a nickname for a high school student who has failed a college entry exam (and is trying again).
In Chinese and Korean, the Japanese definition of "Masterless Samurai" is known because of the historical context, even in Japanese, the literal translation is closer to the Chinese and Korean definitions shown above.
This will make a fine wall scroll if you are a fan of the Ronin, or see yourself as a Ronin of sorts. However, please think twice before getting a Ronin tattoo!

In Japanese, this character represents the warriors that attempted to hold peace when there was no Emperor in Japan. Be cautious though, as it is an old way to express "servant" or "waiter" in Chinese and Korean. Of course, if you are a samurai, you are a servant to your Shogun-ate, Lord, or the people (which is the root meaning).
See Also... Warrior
Wall scroll artwork shown on this page is priced as follows:
1 character $28.88 each
2-3 characters $39.88 each
After you select your calligraphy, our website will take you through the process of customizing your artwork.
Options for other mounting such as portraits are available for $12 less.
We also offer the services of a famous master calligrapher for a $40 fee on any scroll if you are looking for investment-quality calligraphy.
If you chose our famous master-calligrapher, you also get more choices for silk and paper colors and the option for larger artwork.
All of our calligraphy is completely done by hand in the ancient way.
When the calligrapher finishes creating your artwork, it is taken to our art mounting workshop in Beijing where a wall scroll is made by hand from a combination of silk, rice paper, and wood.
After we create your wall scroll, it takes at least two weeks for air mail delivery from Beijing to you.
Therefore, allow at least 3 weeks for delivery from the time you place your order.
When you select your calligraphy, you'll be taken to another page where you can choose various custom options.
The scroll that I am holding in this picture is a "regular size"
4-character wall scroll.
As you can see, it is a great size to hang on your wall.
(We also offer custom wall scrolls in larger sizes)
Professional calligraphers are getting to be hard to find these days.
Instead of drawing characters by hand, the new generation in China merely type roman letters into their computer keyboards and pick the character that they want from a list that pops up.
There is some fear that true Chinese calligraphy may become a lost art in the coming years. Many art institutes in China are now promoting calligraphy programs in hopes of keeping this unique form
of art alive.
Even with the teachings of a top-ranked calligrapher in China, my calligraphy will never be good enough to sell. I will leave that to the experts.
The same calligrapher who gave me those lessons also attracted a crowd of thousands and a TV crew as he created characters over 6-feet high. He happens to be ranked as one of the top 100 calligraphers in all of China. He is also one of very few that would actually attempt such a feat.
The following table is only helpful for those studying Chinese (or Japanese), and perhaps helps search engines to find this page when someone enters Romanized Chinese or Japanese
| Title | Characters Simplified Traditional |
Japanese Romaji (Romanized Japanese) | Various forms of Hanyu-Pinyin (Romanized Chinese) | |||
| Bushido / The Way of the Samurai | 武士道 武士道 | bushido | wǔ shì dào | wu3 shi4 dao4 | ||
| Ninja | 忍者 忍者 | ninja | rěn zhě | ren3 zhe3 | ||
| Ronin | 浪人 浪人 | ronin | làng rén | lang4 ren2 | ||
| Samurai | 侍 侍 | samurai | shì | shi4 | ||
| If you have not set up your computer to display Chinese, the characters in this table probably look like empty boxes or random text garbage.
This is why we spent hundreds of hours making images so that you could view the characters in the "Samurai" listings above. If you want your Windows computer to be able to display Chinese characters you can either head to your Regional and Language options in your Win XP control panel, select the [Languages] tab and click on [Install files for East Asian Languages]. This task will ask for your Win XP CD to complete in most cases. If you don't have your Windows XP CD, or are running Windows 98, you can also download/run the simplified Chinese font package installer from Microsoft which works independently with Win 98, ME, 2000, and XP. It's a 2.5MB download, so if you are on dial up, start the download and go make a sandwich. | ||||||
All custom calligraphy items are made-to-order in our little Beijing artwork-mounting workshop.
Normal delivery isjust over 3 weeksfor these handmade items.
Key / Important Pages |
Information Pages |
"How To" Pages |
Search Engine & Tech Stuff |
|
| Home | About Us | Asian Art Questions & Answers | How We Make Our Wall Scrolls & Portraits | Site Map |
| Asian Art Gallery | About China | How Chinese Paintings are Mounted | How To Care For Wall Scrolls | Asian Language Tools |
| New Asian Art Arrivals | F.A.Q. | Asian Art Adventures | Framing Suggestions for Chinese Art | Characters |
| Contact Us | Gary's Stories | Japanese & Chinese Calligraphy Search | How To Frame Asian Art | Asian Art Index |
Copyright Oriental Outpost 2002-2007 - All Rights Reserved
Privacy Policy