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Chapter 27 The poem with which the interpreter Ma Huan 馬歡
(b. c. 1380) prefaces his account of the early Ming imperially
Precious Stones and ordered oceanic voyages, commanded by the eunuch
admiral Zheng He 鄭和 (1371–1433), opens stirringly:
Ming Culture, 1400–1450 The emperor’s glorious envoy received the divine commands,
‘proclaim aloud the silken sounds, and go to the barbarous
lands’ …
Craig Clunas And it continues, in describing the armada’s reception in
foreign parts:
Here when the heavenly writing came, a happy clamour
meeting,
Chieftains and heads of the barbarous tribes all vied to give it
greeting.
Tribute of southern gold, rare gems, from distant parts appear;
Grateful, admiring our virtue, they show themselves loyal,
sincere …
Mountains high and mighty waves I ere then saw but few;
Unwonted gems and jewels rare I now begin to view. 1
Even by the standards of early 15th-century court
panegyric, hardly famed as one of the high points of Chinese
verse, this is not great poetry. But, as this chapter will argue,
it is not by accident that ‘southern gold’ (nan jin 南) and ‘rare
gems’ (yi bao 異寳), or ‘unwonted gems and jewels’ (yi bao qi
zhen 異寳奇珍) glitter in this poem with which Ma Huan
opened his Overall Survey of the Ocean Shores (Ying ya shenglan
瀛涯勝覽), a text which was probably written after the first
voyage in 1416. In fact, they are the only specific objects of
foreign ‘tribute’ he mentions in this prefatory verse.
Gemstones, and objects inlaid with gemstones, have lain
outside the mainstream of research into Chinese art and
material culture, largely because until recently scholars have
had so few examples to examine. Although the literary
evidence for the use of table vessels in precious metals is
ample, the number of surviving artefacts in museums, prior
to recent archaeological discoveries, has been small. The
2
same is true a fortiori with regard to precious metal vessels
and objects enhanced with gemstones. The few surviving
Plate 27.1 Toothpick box with chain, Ming dynasty, 15th century. Gold
and gems, length 9.1cm, with chain 25.2cm, weight 83g. Rietberg
Museum, Zurich, Collection Alice and Pierre Uldry. Inv. No. U 301 GS

236 | Ming China: Courts and Contacts 1400–1450