Page 37 - Chinese Decorative Arts: The Metropolitan Museum of Art Bulletin, v. 55, no. 1 (Summer, 1997)

The Nine Elders of Mount s is true of jade, the use of soapstone Elders of Mount Xiang," a common theme in
Xiang
................................................................................ (or steatite) has a long history in China Chinese painting and decorative arts, such
18th
Qing dynasty, century and can be traced back to the Neolithic period. representations refer to the retirement of the
Soapstone This sculpture is decorated on all four sides celebrated poet Bo Juyi (772-846). During
H. 71/2 in. (19.1 cm)
with images in low relief to illustrate an inac- this period Bo lived in the Mount Xiang tem-
Bequest ofJacob Ruppert, 1939 cessible mountain on which a few pines strug- ple on the outskirts of Luoyang, Henan
39.65.33 gle for survival. On the front three aged men Province, where he was often visited by his
with long beards and walking sticks and a contemporaries.
a
pack-carrying attendant are crossing bridge The now-damaged depiction of the weiqi
in the foothills. Above them two figures are game may also allude to stories such as that of
depicted on a ledge leading into a cave. One the woodcutter who stopped to watch two
a
elder is playing game of weiqi (a type of youths playing chess in the mountains and
Chinese chess) while his companion looks on. discovered upon his return to his village that
Three other gentlemen are shown walking in all of his contemporaries had passed away in
the woods on the back of the mountain, where his absence. Anecdotes of this type, which
a small deer snuggles into the quiet landscape. often include meeting immortals and being
The scene of the man playing weiqi pro- caught up in an entirely different time system,
vides a clue to the imagery. Weiqi is not a soli- are found in works such as Shu-i-chi (Tales of
tary game, so it seems likely that a second the Extraordinary), by Ren Fang, and other
player once appeared on the other side of the writings of the Six Dynasties.
board and was lost because of damage and DPL
subsequent recarving. Known as "The Nine

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