Page 66 - Bonhams Scholars Art and Instruments Hong Kong December 2, 2021

the strings would be sanded down and polished away to achieve to adapt the instrument, as well as the ability to master the form and
smoothness again. Different levels of sanding would reveal the colours sound of it. Of course, he may well have left the actual remodelling and
of different layers of lacquer beneath. Where it is heavily sanded, the lacquering of the qin to other master qin makers.
underlying layers of black-brown lacquer, or even the vermillion layers
beneath, as well as the grainy antler ash layer will show through, In his essay ‘On the precious qin in the collection of Tang Kai’, Mr
resulting in a shimmering surface of lustrous colours. Zheng Minzhong (1923-2019), the late researcher in Palace Museum
has mentioned seven qin which have been remodeled by the Qing
The remodelling of ‘Jingtao’ under scientific examination dynasty qin master Tang Kai, including the ‘Yuanxiao Qingluo’ qin
The current fengshi form of the ‘Jingtao’ qin is, however, not its (Ape Whistling Through Green Vines) previously in Mr Guan Pinghu’s
original form. X-ray images have, to researchers’ surprise, shown and (1897-1967) collection. Mr Guan acquired the instrument from Mr
confirmed that it was modified from the lianzhu (connected beads) Xia Puzhai. As Mr Guan was extremely critical of the tone of the qin
form. The concave arcs of the original lianzhu form at the head and he used, he had this qin repaired. During the restoration process, Mr
waist of ‘Jingtao’ has been filled with wooden blocks, resulting in a Zheng used to pay visits to the craftsmen to study the restoration
convex profile, then painted over with vermillion and black lacquer. The techniques. There he learned that the side walls of the instrument had
new lacquered surfaces have also been processed to create a mottled been previously widened by wooden strips. When the instrument was
visual effect. Judging from the cracks in the shape of water ripples opened revealing the interior, the original seams where the upper and
connected to those on the original lacquered surface, the remodelling lower parts of the instrument joined could no longer be found. After
of ‘Jingtao’ probably took place before 1919, when it came into Mr Li taking precise measurements of the instrument, it was discovered that
Zizhao’s possession. the original form of the qin ‘may have been zhongni (Confucius style)’.
Inside of the neck is an ink inscription which read ‘Yu Chong in the
It is common to restore a qin, but remodelling is rare. As an second year of the Taikang reign (AD 281)’. Tang Kai’s seal with both
instrument for self-cultivation, the qin holds a noble status among all Chinese and Manchurian writings is placed on the bottom board of
scholars’ items. It is said that ‘a qin is the most virtuous of all musical the qin. The inscription from the restoration by Guan Pinghu is placed
instruments’ and that ‘a scholar should never abandon his qin and se within the ‘dragon pool’ and it reads, ‘In spring of 1956, restored by
zithers without a good reason’. The role played by a qin in the life of Guan Pinghu’. As a master of the Jiuyi School, Guan Pinghu was well
a literati is quite incomparable to that by other artefacts. The owners equipped with comprehensive skills to restore qin instruments. After
would have taken great care of their instruments and the chance of restoration, the ‘Yuanxiao Qingluo’ qin has become a masterpiece,
radical changes in the shape of the qin would be extremely small. and was used in the recording of the classic piece Liu Shui 流水
Also, even a masterful musician of qin may not necessarily have the (Flowing Waters).
aesthetics or craftsmanship to remodel a qin. As demonstrated by Gu
Kaizhi’s (c. 344–406) painting Zhuoqintu (Making a qin), the making The main aim of splitting and repairing an instrument is often to improve
of a qin in ancient times required teamwork with a meticulous division the sound quality. The restoration of the instrument is mainly achieved
of labour. All the important steps, such as modelling the cavity of a by chipping the cavity and grooves in the interior of the qin bodies. In
qin and toning, required the joint effort of scholars and craftsmen. addition to improving the tone of the instrument, the modifications were
There have been very few people who could complete the process of also of an aesthetic concern, or even more so. Judging from the x-ray
manufacturing a qin on their own. Even a qin craftsman with masterful images of ‘Jingtao’, it is assumed that the person who remodelled the
skills of wood carving and lacquering, may not have the comprehensive instrument may have had a different view towards the concave curves
ability to adapt or remodel a qin. at the neck and waist of the original lianzhu form. As the change in
shape to a fengshi form, by filling in the concave arcs, had limited
Then, who would be capable of remodelling a qin? In the Qinxue impact on the sound, it can be speculated that the alteration must have
Congshu (Great Compendium of Qin Studies) by Yang Shibai (1863- been carried out by someone with excellent skills which are comparable
1932), a qin named ‘Songhuang Jiayu’ (Striking Jade with Pine and to, or even superior to those of Tang Kai.
Bamboo) is mentioned, which bore a long inscription by Tang Kai, a
qin collector in mid Qing Dynasty and modified a number of antique The ancient sounds inherited by ‘Jingtao’
qins. In the inscription, it noted that the alteration has completely In 1895, Li Zizhao (1856-1938), Wu Changshuo (1844-1927) and
removed the characteristics of the Tang dynasty from the instrument. the others held an elegant gathering in the Yi Garden in Suzhou. One
Such an alteration of a qin would be unimaginable today. However, as Autumn 24 years later, Li Zizhao, together with Wu Lansun and Ye
an established qin master three hundred years ago, Tang Kai had a Zhangbo, invited 33 qin masters from Shanghai, Yangzhou, Chongqing,
large collection of qin. He had the material resources to appreciate and and Hunan to meet at the same spot for a qin gathering, in which there

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