Page 180 - Sothebys Important Chinese Art April 3 2018

fig. 1 fig. 2
Qing Gaozong yuzhi shiwen quanji [Anthology of imperial Qing Gaozong yuzhi shiwen quanji [Anthology of imperial
Qianlong poems and proses], Yuzhi shi san ji [Imperial Qianlong poems and proses], Yuzhi shi wu ji [Imperial poetry,
poetry, vol. 3], juan 25, p. 4 vol. 5], juan 61, pp. 3-4

jade vase. The bronze vase measured not much more than to the dimensions of the raw jade on the emperor’s order.
9 cun in Qing dynasty standards, that is a little over 30 cm. Then the bronze vase, five illustrations on paper, and the jade
The Qianlong Emperor’s vases based on it were all made from replica were submitted for the court’s review, after which the
jade. All the extant jade vases, including the five in the Palace illustrations and the replica were sent to the Anning Workshop
Museum collection and the present lot, all far exceed the of the Imperial Manufactory in Suzhou for further production. 7
bronze original in dimensions-precious and monumental as The first jade replica vase appears to have been limited by the
never seen in ancient times, as Qianlong himself wrote. raw jade to be of modest size, at most identical to the original,
because later court records refer explicitly to “large vases with
Why was Qianlong so pleased? Why did he decide to order the
aquatic creatures.”
jade vases made? To answer these questions, we must begin
with the sources of raw jade during the Qianlong period and Between the 22nd and 24th years of the Qianlong reign, the
the emperor’s love of the past. Qing military defeated Dzungars and Hui peoples definitively
and occupied Xinjiang, where it installed an administrator to
From the beginning of the Qing dynasty to the early Qianlong
cement its rule. From this point onwards, Khotan was ruled
reign, jade production was not especially well-developed.
directly as the rest of the empire, and the supply of raw jade
Aside from the emperors’ preferences and national politics,
was no longer obstructed. Beginning in the 25th year of
an important reason was the lack of raw jade. The various
the Qianlong reign, jade was sent as a tributary good to the
Dzungar rebellions in Xinjiang blocked the supply of Khotan
court in the spring and autumn of every year. This influx of
jade to mainland China, and the little raw jade available came
raw jade allowed Qianlong to express his own understanding
as tributes or had to be smuggled. As a result, in the early-
and obsessive love of jade to the fullest degree, and laid the
Qing period Chinese jades tended not to be very well made,
material foundation for the golden age of jade during his reign.
and there were occasional waves of large-scale refashioning
of jades from past dynasties. Highly influenced by Han According to an entry in the records of the palace workshops
Chinese culture, the Qianlong Emperor was fond of ancient (Zaobanchu), the eunuch Hu Shijie submitted a large green
artefacts, but he tended to create archaistic jade plates and jade vase with aquatic creatures with a base. The Emperor
other small items, and did not produce many large-scale ordered that a brocade case be made for it and that the vase
archaistic jade objects. The earliest record of the jade vases be installed at Qianqing Palace as high-quality archaistic
with aquatic creatures in question dates from the 18th year ware. This large green jade vase with aquatic creatures can be
of his reign. Court documents record that after the eunuch related to three vases mentioned in Qianlong’s poem dated to
Hu Shijie brought the bronze vase with aquatic creatures to the 27th year of his reign. All three jade vases exceed 40 cm in
the court, a replica of it was made from green jade according height, with the tallest measuring 46.3 cm. It is clear that such

178 SOTHEBY’S 蘇富比