如果不趕時間，請暫時忘掉那些旅遊指南上的標準行程。在台北後火車站蜿蜒的小巷弄裡，藏著一個更沉重、更安靜，也更具靈魂的空間。那裡有一間名為「日星鑄字行」的店鋪，它不只是一間販賣文具的老店，更是一個關於「時間」與「字的重量」的保存地。
If you are not in a hurry, please temporarily forget about the standard itineraries in travel guides. Hidden in the winding alleys behind Taipei Main Station lies a space that is heavier, quieter, and more soulful. There is a shop named "Ri Xing Type Foundry." It is not just an old shop selling stationery, but a preservation site for "time" and the "weight of words."
這是一個關於孤獨與倔強的故事。
This is a story about loneliness and stubbornness.
孤獨的守護者與繁體字的方舟
The Lonely Guardian and the Ark of Traditional Characters
推開日星鑄字行的門，你會先聞到一股混合著油墨、金屬與老房子特有的氣味。映入眼簾的，是一排排木架上密密麻麻、數以百萬計的鉛字。這景象在幾十年前的台灣或許尋常，但在今天，這裡是全台灣、甚至是全世界僅存最後一間仍在運作的繁體中文鑄字行。
Pushing open the door of Ri Xing, you are greeted by a scent mixing ink, metal, and the distinct smell of an old house. What comes into view are rows of wooden shelves packed with millions of lead characters. This scene might have been common in Taiwan decades ago, but today, this is the last operating Traditional Chinese type foundry in Taiwan, and perhaps the world.
這間店的歷史，其實就是台灣印刷產業的縮影。成立於 1969 年，那時是活版印刷的黃金年代，書本上的每一個字，都必須經過高溫鑄造、人工檢字、排版，最後壓印在紙上。然而，隨著 1990 年代電腦排版的興起，這項講究「手感」的工藝迅速被視為過時、沒效率的產物。
The history of this shop is a microcosm of Taiwan's printing industry. Established in 1969, it was the golden age of letterpress printing. Every character in a book had to be cast at high temperatures, hand-picked, typeset, and finally pressed onto paper. However, with the rise of digital typesetting in the 1990s, this craft, which prized "touch," was quickly deemed obsolete and inefficient.
當時，台北街頭的鑄字行一家接一家倒閉，沈重的鉛字被當成廢鐵秤斤論兩地賣掉。日星的老闆張介冠先生，卻做了一個違反商業邏輯的決定。為了父親「保留漢字文化」的遺願，也為了不讓繁體中文優美的銅模就此消失，他在所有人都在逃離這艘船時，選擇留下來修補它。他孤軍奮戰，守著這些不會說話的鉛塊，這一守就是幾十年。
Back then, type foundries on the streets of Taipei closed one after another, their heavy lead type sold off as scrap metal by weight. But Mr. Chang Chieh-kuan, the owner of Ri Xing, made a decision that defied business logic. To honor his father's dying wish to "preserve Hanzi culture" and to ensure the exquisite copper matrices of Traditional Chinese wouldn't disappear, he chose to stay and repair the ship while everyone else was fleeing. He fought a lonely battle, guarding these silent blocks of lead for decades.
火與金屬的誕生：鉛字是怎麼做出來的？
The Birth of Fire and Metal: How is Lead Type Produced?
這不只是一個保存倉庫，更是一座活著的工廠。如果你運氣好，剛好遇到老闆在店鋪深處操作鑄字機，你會聽到一種規律而迷人的「咔嚓、咔嚓」聲。
This is not just a storage warehouse; it is a living factory. If you are lucky enough to catch the owner operating the casting machine deep in the shop, you will hear a rhythmic and mesmerizing "clack, clack" sound.
鉛字的誕生過程，是一場火與金屬的舞蹈。首先，必須有一枚刻有反向字體的「銅模」（Matrix），這是鉛字的母親，也是日星最珍貴的資產。接著，鑄字機將鉛合金加熱到攝氏 300 多度成為滾燙的液態，再以高壓瞬間注入模具中。
The birth of a lead character is a dance of fire and metal. First, there must be a "copper matrix" engraved with the reverse character; this is the mother of the lead type and Ri Xing's most precious asset. Next, the casting machine heats the lead alloy to over 300 degrees Celsius until it becomes a scalding liquid, then injects it into the mold at high pressure in an instant.
短短不到一秒鐘，鉛水在水冷系統下迅速凝固，一個帶著銀灰色光澤、稜角分明的鉛字就此被推了出來。這是一個高溫、充滿油氣且相當危險的工作環境，但你看著那些剛出爐、還帶著餘溫的字，會明白為什麼這些字是有靈魂的——因為它們是在烈火中重生的。
In less than a second, the molten lead solidifies rapidly under the water-cooling system, and a lead character with a silvery-grey luster and sharp edges is pushed out. This is a high-temperature, oily, and rather dangerous working environment. But looking at those freshly made characters still holding residual heat, you understand why these words have souls—because they are reborn in fire.
為什麼在數位時代，我們依然需要鉛字？
Why Do We Still Need Lead Type in the Digital Age?
你可能會問，在這個手指滑動就能傳送訊息的雲端時代，為什麼我們還需要這些笨重、充滿毒性（鉛）、且製造緩慢的東西？
You might ask, in this cloud era where a swipe of a finger sends a message, why do we still need these heavy, toxic (lead), and slow-to-produce objects?
這正是日星鑄字行近年來反而受到年輕設計師與國際旅客關注的原因——我們太渴望「真實」了。電腦字體雖然完美、銳利，但它是平面的、冰冷的。而活版印刷出來的字，因為物理壓力的關係，會在紙張上留下一道微微凹陷的痕跡（Letterpress）。那種墨水暈染的邊緣，以及指尖撫摸過紙面時的凹凸感，是機器無法複製的溫暖。
This is precisely why Ri Xing has recently attracted the attention of young designers and international travelers—we crave "reality." While computer fonts are perfect and sharp, they are flat and cold. Characters produced by letterpress printing, due to physical pressure, leave a slight indentation on the paper. That edge where the ink spreads and the tactile sensation of the embossed paper under your fingertips are warmth that machines cannot replicate.
在這裡，每一個字都是有重量的實體。當你親手從字架上撿出一個字，你會意識到「文字」不再只是螢幕上的像素，而是一塊沉甸甸的金屬。這種重量感，會讓你重新思考溝通的意義。這是一種對過度快速、過度完美的數位生活的反叛。
Here, every character is a physical entity with weight. When you pick a character from the shelf with your own hands, you realize that "text" is no longer just pixels on a screen, but a heavy piece of metal. This sense of weight makes you rethink the meaning of communication. It is a rebellion against the overly fast, overly perfect digital life.
實體的記憶：在這裡你可以找到什麼？
Tangible Memories: What Can You Find Here?
除了感受歷史氛圍，日星鑄字行其實也是一個開放的寶庫。如果你想帶走一份具體的記憶，或是尋找獨特的創作素材，這裡提供了幾種非常特別的服務與商品：
Besides experiencing the historical atmosphere, Ri Xing Type Foundry is also an open treasure trove. If you want to take home a tangible memory or find unique creative materials, they offer several very special services and products:
1. 鉛字檢索與購買 (Lead Type Retrieval and Purchase)這裡是目前極少數可以直接購買「鉛字」的地方。你可以試著在茫茫字海中，找出自己的名字，或是對你有特殊意義的漢字。日星保存了許多數位字庫裡找不到的優美老字體（如宋體、楷體），各有不同的號數大小。當你將這幾個冷硬的鉛字放在手心，你會發現它比任何大量生產的商品都更有份量。
This is one of the very few places where you can directly purchase "lead type." You can try to find your own name or Hanzi characters with special meaning in the vast sea of type. Ri Xing preserves many exquisite old typefaces (such as Song and Kai styles) not found in digital fonts, available in various sizes. When you hold these cold, hard lead characters in your palm, you will find they carry more weight than any mass-produced commodity.
2. 客製化鉛字印章 (Customized Lead Type Stamps)如果你挑選了喜歡的字，店內也提供精緻的木盒或印章套件，讓你可以將散落的鉛字組裝成專屬的印章。這是一個將傳統工藝轉化為現代日常用品的過程，非常適合作為書桌上的紙鎮或私人藏書章。
If you select the characters you like, the shop also provides exquisite wooden boxes or stamp kits, allowing you to assemble the scattered lead type into a personalized stamp. This process transforms traditional craft into a modern daily object, perfect as a paperweight on a desk or a private library stamp.
不過，來到這裡有一條必須遵守的鐵律，也是這項工藝最迷人的地方：「鉛字一旦取出，絕對不能自己放回去。」
However, there is an iron rule here that must be followed, which is also the most fascinating part of this craft: "Once a lead character is picked up, never put it back yourself."
這不是刁難，而是因為鉛字非常柔軟，且排列順序極其複雜。外行人隨手一放，可能會放錯位置，或是碰傷鉛字的邊角，這對鑄字行來說是無法挽回的傷害。這個規則本身就在告訴我們：這是一項脆弱且珍貴的技藝，請帶著敬意觸碰它。
This is not to be difficult, but because lead is very soft and the arrangement is extremely complex. A casual placement by a layperson could result in the wrong position or damage to the edges of the type, causing irreversible harm to the foundry. The rule itself tells us: this is a fragile and precious craft; please touch it with respect.
CORE 給朋友的深層視角
A Deeper Perspective for Friends
在這個什麼都講求快速、雲端化的時代，日星鑄字行像是一個倔強的老靈魂。它提醒我們，文字是有重量的，溝通是需要溫度的。無論你是否帶走一枚鉛字，光是站在這片字海中，看著台灣人守護文化的那份固執與溫柔，本身就是一次難得的洗禮。
In this era where everything is fast and cloud-based, Ri Xing Type Foundry is like a stubborn old soul. It reminds us that words carry weight and communication requires warmth. Whether you take home a piece of lead type or not, just standing in this sea of words and witnessing the persistence and gentleness of the Taiwanese people in guarding their culture is a rare baptism in itself.