Page 101 - Important Chinese Art Hong Kong April 2, 2019 Sotheby's

‘HEAVEN AND EARTH’
A MAGNIFICENT YELLOW JADE VASE

DR HAJNI ELIAS

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The present vase represents a harmonious blend of technical worship the Earth. It is a challenge for any jade carver to
prowess and artistic imagination. It is an arresting artefact, form the perfect circle and perhaps for this reason it is a
impressive for its use of a large yellow jade boulder that has shape that has been valued so much. While historically the
been skilfully fashioned into an object seeped in classical circle represented Heaven, in opposition to the square that
symbolism while being contemporary at the same time. The symbolised Earth, in popular culture, especially though the
vase is decorated in high relief carving with a large dragon influence of the teachings of Daoism, circles came to stand
and eight small chilong climbing amongst ruyi-form clouds for perfection, oneness and unity. Furthermore, the flawless
over and around a conjoined cong and cylinder embedded circle of the Daoist yin and yang symbol represents the
in rocks above cresting waves. The beauty of the pale reunion and harmonious blend of conflicting forces.
yellow jade is made prominent by its smooth patina and In contrast, the straight lines and sharp corners of the
the use of its natural russet fissures that have been skilfully square symbolise the concept of rules, regulations and the
incorporated into the design.
correct way of doing things (fangfa). The idiom zhengfang
The use of two distinct geometric shapes, the circle in the comes to mind, which literally means ‘square and straight’
form of a cylinder and the square represented by the cong and used when describing one who is morally upright
is perfectly balanced by the flowing and undulating forms like the perfect square. The cong that forms part of the
of the animals, clouds and waves. In classical literature the present vase represents another archaic shape known to
circle and square together represent the pairing of Heaven the Chinese artist. Early examples of cong objects were
and Earth. Thus, the carver of the vase has skilfully created unearthed from numerous tombs of the Liangzhu culture
a design which at first glance appears to merely combine around Lake Tai in Jiangsu province. In the form of a tube
two distinct forms, but explored closer, represents one of it is square on the outside with a hollow cylindrical centre,
the most powerful symbolisms known in Chinese art, the thus it combines the two significant shapes of a circle
‘Cosmic Universe’. While the large dragon is the symbol of and a square. Cong are amongst the most impressive yet
the emperor, in this arrangement it represents the supreme enigmatic of all ancient Chinese jade carvings. Although they
imperial power. The figure of the dragon, accompanied by were objects that circulated amongst collectors throughout
its companions, the chilong, is depicted ascending from history for centuries, their nature and function remain a
the waves and rocks, reaching to take its place as the mystery. Recent archaeological excavations show that they
ultimate ruler. The maker of this vase has thus created a were associated mostly with male tomb occupants, who, if
visual programme which is about the supreme power of the powerful, could have a considerable number of them in a
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emperor in the Chinese cosmic universe. burial pit. While there is still no consensus amongst scholars
as to the artistic intention behind the combination of circle
In order to better understand the hidden symbolism of this
magnificent vase, let us examine the significance of the two and square, the Warring States period poet Song Yu (fl. 298-
263 BC) employed the following metaphor in his poem titled
important shapes, the circle and the square in Chinese art. Rhapsody on Talks about Greatness (Dayan fu) describing
One of the earliest circle form objects known in China are
the bi jade discs, found carefully laid on the bodies of the the ultimate goal that all men should aspire to:
royals in the tombs of the Hongshan (c. 3800-2700 BC) Take square Earth as a chariot
and the Liangzhu (c. 3400-2250 BC) cultures in northeast Take round Heaven as its canopy
and east China. According to the Confucian cannon, the The shining long sword [accompanying the great man]
Rites of Zhou (Zhou li), a ruler was expected to use a green thus leans far beyond Heaven. 3
jade bi for worshipping Heaven and a yellow jade cong to