n6 Field Museum or Natural History — Anth., Vol. X. 



that the instrument for writing was a wooden or bamboo stylus 1 (of 

 the same kind as still used in Tibet) placed in a tube which was carried 



in the girdle on the right side, 2 and that 

 the ink was a kind of black varnish. 



Wu Ta-ch'eng has illustrated a speci- 

 men of jade (here reproduced in Fig. 40) 

 which he thinks he is justified in identify- 

 ing with the imperial jade tablet hu for 

 writing. It is of green jade with a "black 

 mist," and in its outward shape, resembles 

 the other imperial tablets, *. e. it is con- 

 structed in the shape of an implement, 

 seemingly a knife. There are three per- 

 forations arranged in a vertical line near 

 one of the lateral edges, and a smaller 

 , perforation outside of this row near the 

 lower end ; the latter served for the passage of a cord 

 or band, apparently for two purposes, — to fasten 

 the instrument to the girdle, and to suspend it from 

 a wall if writing on it was required. In the same 

 way as the ancient bamboo slips, these were also 

 inscribed with just one veitical line of characters. 

 It is more difficult to see for what purpose the three 

 other perforations were made, — possibly a band 

 was passed through these and fastened in the middle 

 to suspend the tablet from the girdle, so that it was 

 then in an horizontal position. 



Inscribed jade tablets played a prominent role in 

 times of antiquity for the sacrifices feng and shan 

 offered to Heaven and Earth on the summit of the 

 sacred T'ai-shan. The main object of these cere- 

 monies was to announce to these two powerful deities 

 the accession to the throne and the prosperity of a 

 new dynasty: the emperor, recalling the merits of 

 his predecessors and ascribing to their blessings his 

 own virtues and success, returned his thanks to the two deities for 

 the support which they had rendered to him and his line. This 

 announcement was made by means of a document written and en- 

 graved on tablets of jade; five in number, one foot two inches in 

 length, five inches in width and one inch in thickness. The slabs were 



^ee Chavannes, /. c, pp. 65 et seq. 

 2 Li ki, Net tse I, 2. 



Fig. 40. 



Imperial Jade Tablet 



hu for writing. 



