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Lot Essay
The Jiaqing Emperor, originally named Yongyan, was the fifth emperor of the Qing dynasty who ascended the throne at the age of thirty-six. Unlike other sovereigns, Jiaqing was deprived of independent rule when he ascended the throne as his retired father, the Supreme Emperor, remained the de facto ruler and ultimate decision-maker. This unique situation set the standard throughout Jiaqing’s reign. What had been a practice in the Qianlong period also prevailed in the Jiaqing period, and this is reflected in the form and style of Jiaqing’s imperial seals. One such example is the carving of seals in the context of a group. During the Qianlong period a considerable number of seals in related groups were produced, each group comprising one principal seal bearing the name of a palace or hall while the others were inscribed with poetic phrases and maxims alluding to the meaning and textual reflection to the first seal. As with his father, a total of seventy groups of seals were carved during Jiaqing’s reign, the present seal belongs to such a group forming a set together with two other seals, Mingke jingshe ‘Studio of Tea Branches’, and Fanghua daiyin, ‘Appreciate the beauty of flowers with tea supplanting wine’. For a further discussion on Jiaqing Imperial seals and seal groups, see the introductory essay for Lot 3005 in this sale by Guo Fuxiang ‘Re-examining The Imperial Seal ‘Zhoujia yanxi zhi bao’ of Emperor Jiaqing’.
The current seal is consistent in size, text and calligraphic style with one documented and illustrated in the Jiaqing Baosou, the Jiaqing Emperor’s imperial seal catalogue. According to the Baosou, this seal was in stored in a box with eleven other seals also made of Changhua stone. A considerable number of Imperial seals of the Qing Emperors and Empresses was made of Changhua stone, which was mined from the eponymous town in Zhejiang province. For other Qing Imperial seals made of Changhua stone, compare to the Qianlong Emperor’s group seal comprised of Qianlong chenhan (Qianlong’s Brushwork), Weijing weiyi (Be precise, be undivided), and Jingshengdai (Conscientiousness triumphing over idleness).
The impression of the current seal is also included in Qingdai dihou xiyin pu [‘An Album of Impressions of the Qing dynasty Rulers and Empresses’ seals], vol. 3, Jiaqing juan 2, Beijing, 2005, p. 185, and in Qingdai dihou xiyin jicheng [Catalogue of Imperial Seals of the Qing Dynasty], vol. 5, Beijing, 2005, p. 199 (fig. 1). The current seal was in the collection of Kamata Eizokudo, a store specialised in scholar’s objects in Osaka active in the early 1900s, an impression of the current seal made by Kamata Eizokudo is included with the current lot (fig. 2).
The current seal is consistent in size, text and calligraphic style with one documented and illustrated in the Jiaqing Baosou, the Jiaqing Emperor’s imperial seal catalogue. According to the Baosou, this seal was in stored in a box with eleven other seals also made of Changhua stone. A considerable number of Imperial seals of the Qing Emperors and Empresses was made of Changhua stone, which was mined from the eponymous town in Zhejiang province. For other Qing Imperial seals made of Changhua stone, compare to the Qianlong Emperor’s group seal comprised of Qianlong chenhan (Qianlong’s Brushwork), Weijing weiyi (Be precise, be undivided), and Jingshengdai (Conscientiousness triumphing over idleness).
The impression of the current seal is also included in Qingdai dihou xiyin pu [‘An Album of Impressions of the Qing dynasty Rulers and Empresses’ seals], vol. 3, Jiaqing juan 2, Beijing, 2005, p. 185, and in Qingdai dihou xiyin jicheng [Catalogue of Imperial Seals of the Qing Dynasty], vol. 5, Beijing, 2005, p. 199 (fig. 1). The current seal was in the collection of Kamata Eizokudo, a store specialised in scholar’s objects in Osaka active in the early 1900s, an impression of the current seal made by Kamata Eizokudo is included with the current lot (fig. 2).