Chop Seal
Vintage Chinese Chop Seal
Stone cylinder is etched all around with landscape and inscription, maybe a poem or story that was meaningful for the signator. It is topped with a foo dog carved in realistic and sparing detail. The seal on the bottom has some residual red ink. The details of the calligraphy are preserved. We cannot determine the age of this piece.
The type of stone used is unknown, but it is dense and harder than soapstone carvings that we have seen. Blue gray in color
More info:
-Carving scene matches the poem description.
-The symbol carved in the front: ? ("foo"), means blessings. Popular Chinese character for greetings.
- The dog like creature carved at the top: an auspicious animal, believed to be a Pixiu (??), a Chinese mythical hybrid creature to bring good luck, wealth and avoid evil energy.
- Poem:
???? (???)
Four Seasons "palindrome" (Autumn II)
(????)
Jin Dynasty
?·????
Yuwen Xuzhong (author)
?????,
Short reed bend down remain sad rain,
??????
Empty boat floating with the evening tide.
?????,
A group of wild goose fly lonely back to the dark swamp.
??????
Scattered leaves hanging carefully on the tips of tree branches.
The poem was written in 1079-1146, by the famous general and scholar Yuwen Xuzhong of Song Dynasty. Yuwen Xuzhong was a Song envoy detained by the Jurchens. It was under Yuwen Xuzhong's influence that a variety of Han Chinese cultural practices entered the Jin dynasty.
This poem is a very classic example of "Huiwen", poems that work when reading backward. It is different from a palindrome poem, since it forms a different well-written poem backward. This type of poems was particularly popular in Jin Dynasty right after Song((????)) .
This poem is from a series of the "Four Seasons" poems Yuwen wrote. It is the second poem of "Autumn". It describes the sight of mid-autumn scenery, where everything gradually depressed in the vast wilderness.
Weight 1 lb 12 oz.
- Object: Chop Seal
- Artist: -
- Circa: post 1940's
- Dimensions: 5 3/4" Height 1 7/8" diameter
- Culture Area: Asia
- Cultural Group: China
- Cultural Context: The Chop Seal has played an integral part in Chinese culture for thousands of years, with the first recorded seals appearing during rule of the Shang Dynasty (c.1600-1046 BCE). By 206 BCE, with the inception of the Han Dynasty, Chop Seals were an intrinsic aspect of the Chinese administration and their use has persisted to this day within both China and Taiwan. Chop Seals are used to sign documents, art, and paperwork, with the signature of the owner being carved into the bottom of the seal. The Chop Seal is used with a red paste called Zhusha, and is pressed lightly into the Zhusha before the image is transferred to paper by applying pressure to the seal. The Chop Seal displayed here is quite ornate, with both an autumnal scene and accompanying poem carved into the stone of the seal. The poem, “Four Seasons” is of particular note, as it is written by the Chinese general and scholar Yuwen Xuzhong (c. 1079-1146) of Song Dynasty. What makes the poem interesting is that it is written in the Huiwen style of Chinese Poetry, which is reminiscent of a palindrome, in that when the poem is read backwards it also holds meaning.
- Donor: IELM fund
- Catalog #: 118.002