Page 144 - Christie's Leisurely Life May 29, 2019 Hong Kong

three white jade seals with jiao-dragon finials in a box, a group of ᙔ卿ֿཆ᫉ᢣᨯᡪ㉃㘚⎏༾∵ឬ㐏Ǯㅛ࢑Ǯߎ⢑✙ካᯔ⯝ૃ
three white jade seals with dragons and clouds in a box. The Emperor ጻǶ༾⻽Ƿⶬ㢙⎏Ǹॶ⊑ᅠ◯Ԡ༾ǹࣿ⏟㨸⢑∵ᡛཌ卿⎉→
decrees, send these to Suzhou and have the inscriptions finely and
Հ⩢໭ݥӬ⯎卿ఫទजսᓠᙷᨯᡪԋᏒ㉃㢙ㅳה⎏㘺Ջ༾∵
deeply carved according to what is written on the label of each box.
ལᛓૃጻǶ༾⻽Ƿᝬᇌⶬ㢙⎏୨ᙹഌ௛Ǹॶ⊑ᅠ◯Ԡ༾ǹক
Make zitan boxes for the seals and have everything delivered to the
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capital within this year.’ Although the entry does not mention the Ӳ⢑⎊ℱǸॶ⊑ᅠ◯Ԡ༾ǹǮǸڟリӶቱǹǮǸⴃᘾᚚᆎǹ
exact content of the seal inscription, the descriptions of the materials, ⢑∵卿ݯԋལࡺᑐ᫉᪖࣊ཆᐽ㐈⎏㘺ᙹǸॶ⊑ᅠ◯Ԡ༾ǹǯ
packaging, and groupings correspond to the four large Zhoujia yanxi ᇖᨯᡪज⒖卿㘺ՋǸॶ⊑ᅠ◯Ԡ༾ǹক⏟㨸⢑∵ࣇᙔ⎏ߴ߰
zhi bao seals and three white jade Zhoujia yanxi zhi bao seal groups
ᛓ⊐⼖႔⥫㙁໭Ꮀ⎏卿ߴ߰⎏ݰ㵲ᛞ㧿ᛓૃጻՀࢦӲჺࢦӬ
recorded in the last section of the Jiaqing Baosou, to which the present
ᝲӴ᚞⯍ࢦՀᝲǯՒճ᰻㈷ᛞૃጻႽ㇝᭯⼖႔ᙹ㬷ߴࣇᛞ㇝
seal belongs.
࠼႙⡿ߴ卿ໃऑ㇝᳅卿Ԇ㜩࢑⏇ㅛ卿࡞ᇷᙻჺᄓ߿㘨՗१㙊卿
The above entry reveals that the inscriptions of the Zhoujia yanxi zhi ங⒜⒜Ӭٖᝲݤ㇝ཆ㘺Ջ༾∵ߴㅳ໭Ꮀ卿༰ஙᛓᝳՋᆎ՞Ꮢ
bao seals were carved in the Suzhou Imperial Textile Manufactory and
㫙ǯ㘺जսᇈൃ஠㈛㞐ἃբ㿢᫉ᙹ༾∵ஙࣇᙔ↱ߴᙹ㬷ᝯ߅
that they had to be completed by the year’s end. As the entry dates to
→཭㛑⎏⊂⓷Ԡ⽔ǯ
the fifteenth day of the eleventh month, the time of carving thus took
place between the second half of the eleventh month and the twelfth
month, leaving the carvers just about a month’s time to complete 㨸ᙻ᫉༾卿ᝳսӴݦ㿽㫬㇝㙊Ӭ᫊ㅚ݋厍Ӭᛓ٨Ǹॶ⊑ᅠ◯
the task. Such a stringent time constraint may explain the rigidity of Ԡ༾ǹㅳהԠ㪡卿ૃጻ⎑Ⴝཌ⯇Ⴀ⎏Ӭ⊂㙊リԻݥ㬷⥙⢙卿
certain strokes found on the current seal. 㨼ᚺԻǸॶ⊑ᅠ◯ǹ⎏⏻༰्⨒ǯૃጻ⎑ႽஙૃጻՀࢦՆჺ
卻 卼᫈ᝲ⯟リ⎏ा⯀Ƕॶ⊑ᅠ◯Ԡ༾⪩ओǷԋ㌌ߪǸॶ⊑
There are two points worth further exploration here. First is the
meaning behind the phrase Zhoujia yanxi zhi bao. During the tea ᅠ◯Ԡ༾ǹㅳה⎏ទዪ卿Ǹᛏ᫐ݪ᚞ⶃ೰卿㇟ᙆቫḞ卿᛿㐁༹
gathering in 1820, the Jiaqing Emperor explained that the Zhoujia ࢥǯ⸌սӬ՞Ԡ≫▴ܻᄞ卿࣊ⶃඊԠԜ໫㧩ᯎ卿݈໺ߴℱ⡕
yanxi zhi bao seals were commissioned as a symbolic tool to extend ჺ卿㥝ᙔլ▢ǯ
উᅡ⯀⠢㙽Ⱞℱ卿ߴ❨ᝠĝॶ⊑ᅠ◯Ԡ༾Ğ卿
the blessings associated with his sixtieth-birthday to people across his
ዂ㯳ӽ⎈գ೰卿Ꮛጻ⎻⊎卿⺧ᱡம◯卿⣱ᅠ⧍ᙎǯǹ 㘺ㅞ⎏
empire, since zhoujia refers to the completion of a jiazi cycle, xi has the
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meaning of joy and auspiciousness, and yan means to extend. Second, Ǹ◯ǹໃݰᝳჽ◙म▼⎏ዪ⨒卿Ԯལᛓ㊯⡕ჺॶ⊑卿㕇㵲ᆎڟ卿
a survey of the Palace Archives and the Jiaqing Emperor’s imperial 㘺ᛓૃጻ⎑Ⴝ⎏⯇㕇Ԡ◯ǯ⊐⎑Ⴝ⎏⯇㕇Ԡ◯⩧ᅠֳ⯍୨ᱡ഍
poems reveals that the events surrounding the production of Zhoujia Ӵ卿Ꮀἃ⎋ඊԠ◯卿⁒㩃ᭆ㎒卿഍Ӵক㋞卿㘺᫈ᛓૃጻ⎑ႽǸॶ
yanxi zhi bao seals lasted for more than three years, from the eleventh ⊑ᅠ◯ǹ⎏⏻⨒卿ԮᛓձㅳהǸॶ⊑ᅠ◯Ԡ༾ǹ⎏⏻᫈ዪஎǯ
month of the twenty-third year to the first month of the twenty-
Հᛓᇖ߿㘚㙁㗤⽔᰻㈷ᨯᡪকૃጻ⎑Ⴝ⎏ᇙㅳ㉼ᙔ卿ज⒖உ⥴
fifth year of the Jiaqing reign. The long production time coupled
Ǹॶ⊑ᅠ◯Ԡ༾ǹㅳהক⏟㨸⎏᰻࡚㒣㑘ԻӲٖჺ㯔卿ᇖૃ
with the Emperor’s deliberate elaboration on the intent of this special
commission clearly underline the importance of the Zhoujia yanxi zhi ጻՀࢦӲჺࢦӬᝲӬ⏜ᅠֳߪૃጻՀࢦՆჺ᫈ᝲǯ⩧ӻ㘻㙞
bao seals and distinguish them among the imperial seals. ा⯀㧿⎏Ƕॶ⊑ᅠ◯Ԡ༾⪩ओǷ卿㊄⡿㉃㢙ԻǸॶ⊑ᅠ◯Ԡ༾ǹ
⎏ㅳה⫫ᜀক㙞☶卿㘺ஙૃጻ⎑Ⴝ⎏Ꮢᝳ༾∵ԋᛓӶഅ㇦⎏卿
The Zhoujia yanxi zhi bao seals are among the very last seals
ज㇦᫉༾ཌᙻૃጻ⎑Ⴝݰᝳ㞒㇝ዪ⨒ǯ
commissioned by Jiaqing and these were used for marking the
Emperor’s own paintings and calligraphic works. Zhuangjing riqiang
often appears at the beginning with Zhoujia yanxi zhi bao and Jianqiang ⥙Ԡ卿Ǹॶ⊑ᅠ◯Ԡ༾ǹࣿݯ⢑∵ᛓૃጻ⎑ႽӬ⊂ᝬᇌㅳה
buxi at the end of his works. However, due to its relatively large size, ⎏ᄃᙹ༾∵ԠӬ卿㟊⊇ᙻݯᛮჺ⎏ᇙ✖ᝧ⊺Ԡӳ卿Ӭ⯺սǸⴃ
the present Zhoujia yanxi zhi bao seal often appears alone on Jiaqing’s ᘾᚚᆎǹἃᅸ㲛卿սǸॶ⊑ᅠ◯Ԡ༾ǹǮǸڟリӶቱǹἃ೒㈍ǯ
works. This seal is carved from greenish-white jade of exceptional
⩧᫉ᙹǸॶ⊑ᅠ◯Ԡ༾ǹ⊐ᙻ㵲㞔㖅ഌ卿ᘢगங㖅ഌ⎏ᝧ⊺
quality devoid of impurities. The double-dragon finial is exquisitely
ה৅ӳ੷ℒ㟊⊇ǯ᫉༾⊇ᵐᷪ⡿⮏卿㐏஠⡩᲼⎏㬪⎊ℱߴㅳ卿
carved and vividly rendered. Particularly worth noting is the silk sash,
although now detached and slightly fractured, is still in rather good 䂆㟏㫌߰⠢⡿卿ᆨ㎜⊂࡚卿ཝݯࣥទ⢵⣟㚍ظໄⶬ卿㘺ங㙞
condition, which is rare among imperial seals sold in past auctions. ࣸᐽ㐈㙞⎏᳖Ⴝ༾∵ԋԮᛓӶഅ㇦⎏卿ࢦߎ㫙ᇑǯ

1. Daqing Renzong Ruihuangdi shilu [Veritable records of the Emperor Jiaqing of Ƕഌ᳖գ໵⑅⎑Ⴝ༰㢙Ƿ࣍ 卿ૃጻՀࢦӲჺՀᝲǯ
Great Qing], juan 339, second month of the twenty-third year of the Jiaqing reign
2. Daqing Renzong Ruihuangdi shilu [Veritable records of the Emperor Jiaqing of Ƕഌ᳖գ໵⑅⎑Ⴝ༰㢙Ƿ࣍ 卿ૃጻՀࢦՆჺ᫈ᝲǯ
Great Qing], juan 366, first month of the twenty-fifth year of the Jiaqing reign < ᳖ > 㪀ᄮ◉厍Ƕ㚿ᷡ⡕⪡Ӳ✖Ƿ࣍Հǯ࢈՗厍ԋⵖᝧ཭卿 ჺǯ
3. Chen Kangqi [Qing Dynasty], Langqian jiwen sanbi [Miscellaneous notes of a
retired official 3], juan 2, Beijing, 1984 ԋஇ✄Ӭ᫓टᨯᡪ㱦⻦厍Ƕ㙁㗤⽔पה᰻㈷᳖ᨯǷ卿ૃጻՀࢦӲ
4. ‘Dangfang xingwen’ dated to the eleventh month of the twenty-third year of ჺࢦӬᝲğᨯᏑリᙔĠǯ
the Jiaqing reign, Zaobanchu gezuo huoji qingdang [Records of the Imperial Ƕ᳖գ໵ᇙㅳ㉼㱛㫀Ƿ࣍ ǯ
Workshops] preserved in the Chinese First Historical Archive
5. Qing Renzong yuzhishi yuji [Imperial poems by the Emperor Jiaqing,
supplement], juan 1

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