Feb., 1912. Jade.> 113 



as the "south-pointing chariot," as this subject has been amply treated 

 by such scholars as Hirth, Giles and Bushell. The following references 

 may be useful to readers interested in this topic. Illustrations of the 

 jade figure in question are given in the Ku yii Vu, Ch. 1, p. 2, and Ku 

 yii Vu p'u, Ch. 47, p. 1, the former being reproduced in the T'u shu 1st 

 ch'eng and after this one by Giles (Adversaria Sinica, No. 4, p. 114); 

 the latter has been reproduced by Bushell in Bishop's work, Vol. I, 

 p. 31. A corresponding contrivance of bronze is shown in the Kin- 

 shih so (kin so, Vol. 2) reproduced by Hirth in T'oung Pao, Vol. VII, 

 1896, p. 501, and after Hirth by Feldhaus (Ruhmesblatter der 

 Technik, p. 432, Leipzig, 1910). Of modern authors, Hirth (/. c, 

 pp. 498-501) was the first to call attention to this curious object; see also 

 his article "Origin of the Mariner's Compass in China" in The Monist 

 (Vol. XVI, 1906, pp. 321-330), the same reprinted in his "The 

 Ancient History of China" (New York, 1908, pp. 126-136). Dr. 

 Bushell (/. c.) has translated the text of the Ku yii Vu p'u, and Prof. 

 Giles (The Mariner's Compass, /. c, pp. 107-115) has elucidated the 

 whole subject with very valuable comments. It is interesting to note 

 that Hirth, Bushell, and Giles pursued their studies independently 

 one of another, merely from Chinese accounts, without referring the one 

 to the other, and that all three were unaware of the fact that this theme 

 had been taken up twice in our. literature long ago. There is indeed 

 nothing new under the sun, — not even in sinological research. Old 

 Father De Mailla (Histoire generate de la Chine, Vol. XIII, Paris, 

 1785, p. 296) had already described the south-pointing chariot of 

 Ch'eng Wang after the T'ung kien kang mu, and Edouard Biot (Note 

 sur la direction de l'aiguille aimantee en Chine, Comptes rendus des 

 seances de V Academic des sciences, Vol. XIX, 1844, pp. 1-8) has studied 

 this problem with a great amount of ingenuity and acumen. If I am 

 allowed to express an opinion on this subject, it seems to me that it is 

 not worth while wasting energy on the explanation of this so-called • 

 chariot. The specimens figured in the Chinese books mentioned are, 

 as so many other antiquities of recent date, reconstructions or restora- 

 tions based on misconceptions and misunderstandings of the wording 

 of the ancient texts, — misunderstandings easily fostered by the loss 

 of the ancient originals so that unlimited play was allowed the imagina- 

 tion. That the jade or bronze figure itself was not magnetic, goes with- 

 out saying and, if a magnetic needle was employed in this case, it was 

 certainly somewhere suspended freely and not in direct contact with 

 this figure which itself is, in my opinion, an afterthought or purely 

 imaginative creation of the Sung period. However this may be, it 

 has no importance whatever for the archaeology of jade and may be 

 dulv dismissed with these remarks. 



