Page 35 - 2020 Nov 30 Christies Hong Kong Springfield Museum Imperial Art
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The current figure on exhibit at the George Walter Vincent Smith Art Museum, circa 1896 to 1910
ᕴሠި☼ᑞ ⦰ ໝ㡣〴ᑞ܂ࡘᦆⳔ⻒ښḵ㩉ൢᠹˮ
This figure is exceptionally well-carved with details meticulously
rendered, particularly evident on the thread-like, silky beard
and graceful folds of the robe. Very few carved figures from the
Qing dynasty are of such substantial size, and the jade boulder
is extraordinarily even in tone, well-polished with a soft sheen.
While Shoulao represents the Star God of Longevity in the
Daoist Pantheon, the deer accompanying him in this carving is
a homophone for lu, ‘wealth’; and the bat hovering above is a
homophone for fu, ‘happiness’. Together, the imagery represents
Longevity, Wealth and Happiness.
A slightly smaller white jade carving of a Luohan (23.7 cm.),
similarly carved with a voluminous robe with multiple folds, is in
the Qing Court Collection and now in the Palace Museum (fig. 1),
illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace
Museum, Jadeware (III), Hong Kong, 1995, no. 108. Compare also
a smaller white jade carving (15.5 cm.) depicting the Star God
of Longevity and Star God of Happiness together, also from the
same collection, illustrated ibid., no. 106.
Ⅽἔ८㢯ˏ⒩ஔ⡁́䢲ᆾኋᙈǏ܃ᆾᇝᖓ䢲᳦⡁ྋㅿ䣁ᕖ͗㶏
ϯҞ䢲㶏チ㦈Ǚ⎰ǚ䢲⡁ᕱᖓ˖ᑜᕖⷻ⸂㨑⧒䢲⸂チ㦈Ǚ⎼ǚ䢲
˕⡅♼ܐᆓ⎼⎰˕ᒩ䢲㧍ᖏ⎟Ὴǐ⡁⇂㆟ჴ⎟䢲㢯★♢䢲⻞
㨈ᵁ⩮ؽ䢲㭿㮋⛪ᚆ♢⥲䢲ἔㇲ٘ᯍ䢲Ⅽଫ֘⣹䢲ଫോഢ
૯ⅲ᪹́͞ḵἔ㢯ഓ൲㢼ྴˏ⿉ǐ
᪹೫⧃ⳉˏͬₙറⅲⅭἔ⟕ᮗᏈͬ䢮 Ռֱ䢯䢲⻞ۢ㤚ೲⅲ㢯
ח㧰ᙂ⧀ᕴͬ⇂㏩䢲ήⳉᐅ೫ښḵ㡗䢲⮏㙼ᑞᐅ೫ښḵ㡗ⳉᐷḵ
ὊިՈ㢣Ǘἔࣰ䢮˗䢯ǘ䢲㪁䢲 ໝ䢲ॱ ⴽ䢮ॱˏ䢯䣁۷
ᕖˏͬ⎼ᒩᒩ㢯ח䢮 Ռֱ䢯䢲⿉עዻᕊ䢲ॱ ⴽǐ
fig. 1 Collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing
ॱˏ ٫̺ᐅ೫ښḵ㡗ⳉި
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