By
Nancy T. Lu
Back
in 1889, when Qing Dynasty Emperor Guangxu’s Consort Jin arrived in
the imperial court for her wedding, she brought as part of her dowry
the famous Jadeite Cabbage with Insects, a must-see for present-day
visitors at the landmark National Palace Museum in Taipei. Somehow
the daily queue leading to the showcase of this symbol of female
virtue is always exceptionally long. The partly white, partly green
jadeite has a white stalk symbolizing purity, leaves meaning
fertility as well as locust and katydid suggesting children.
Imperfections
of this piece of jadeite, including cracks and patches of different
natural shades, have been skillfully and cleverly turned around by an
unknown 19th
century sculptor to create the veins of the cabbage’s stalks and
leaves.
According
to the National Palace Museum, the repository of fabulous art
treasures once kept in the Forbidden City in China, the cabbage first
began to turn up in Chinese paintings during the Song Dynasty
(960-1279). Artists opted then not to hide the traces of insects, in
fact, drawing them instead with the plants and even allowing them to
nibble away, fly or jump about. Captured, therefore, was the rhythm
of life and interpreted was the ideal of a harmonious co-existence of
all living things in nature.
The
Chinese cabbage took on different meanings for different people in
Chinese history. Rulers saw the humble cabbage as a symbol of
self-reflection. Subjects offered cabbage, inspiring those in power
to make sure that people did not go hungry. Scholars perceived the
cabbage as symbolizing lofty ambitions. Instead of pursuing fame and
fortune, they were moved to seek satisfaction in what they had.
Hands
of great craftsmen converted flaws of jade into priceless
masterpieces, enriching lives with beautiful memories for
generations. The jade treasures still are looked upon with admiration
and awe by people from all walks of life.
The
Jadeite Cabbage with Insects, in particular, was loaned along with
calligraphies from the 7th
to the 14th
century to the Tokyo National Museum from June 24 to July 7 this
year. This unprecedented move took place after lengthy negotiations
which were begun in 2013. The item, thus, made a rare first voyage
overseas in 65 years.
The
Meat-shaped Stone, another important treasure in the collection of
the National Palace Museum in Taipei, went on view also this year at
the Kyushu National Museum in Japan. The banded jasper resembles pork
with defined layers of fat and lean meat. As a reciprocal gesture,
the two museums in Japan will lend rare works of art to the National
Palace Museum in Taipei next year.
The
Jadeite Cabbage with Insects has been returned to the museum in
Taipei to once more draw the admiring glances of visitors from all
over the world. Displayed briefly along with the star cabbage
attraction during the recent absence of the Meat-shaped Stone at the
Taipei museum were the Chinese Jadeite Cabbage, the Jadeite Cabbage
Floral Holder and the Nephrite Brush Holder with a Jadeite Garden
Scene, all dating back to the Qing Dynasty. The eyeful of cabbage did
make an impression on the exquisite Chinese taste for the vegetable.
Photographs shown above are courtesy of the National Palace Museum in Taipei.
Photographs shown above are courtesy of the National Palace Museum in Taipei.
