58 CHINESE IDEAS OF ANTIQUES 



colour. These articles (of whichever colour) are then taken 

 from the water and rubbed w T ith a new cloth till bright and 

 lustrous. The odour of the copper is subdued by a 

 mercurial preparation, which also prevents its- recurring. 

 The sound of the genuine antique is clear and penetrating, 

 while that of counterfeits is dull and coarse, hence it is 

 impossible to deceive those who are initiated in this art. 



Succeeding generations have each in turn attempted to 

 imitate the filling in and the inlaying work of the Hsia and 

 Shang periods. That their workmanship and skill were of a 

 high order is proved by investigation made in ancient 

 graves, and by the careful scrutiny of the articles found 

 therein. Among others things, the following may be found, 

 bangles, scabbard gems, pendants, earrings, hair pins, 

 earplugs, chatelains, etc. When examining these, careful 

 note should be made as to whether the patterns are round 

 or square, and also as to whether they are inlaid in urns or 

 sacrificial cups. So cleverly has the work of imitation been 

 done, that even experienced curators pronounce these 

 articles to date from the " San Tai " period. The work of 

 differentiation should as a rule be easily carried out, because 

 genuine antiques are light in weight, and in some way or 

 other will show evidences of their antiquity. If they are 

 not made thin by rust, they will be cracked or deficient in 

 some part. They will certainly be earth corroded or water 

 stained, and may have their ornamental bosses and knobs 

 covered with a verdigris pigment, or have some other 

 apparent or technical peculiarity which distinguishes them 

 from the counterfeit article. 



Besides this the genuine antique possesses a kind of 

 heaven-born natural beauty which is almost impossible to 

 describe, and their peculiar kingfisher green colour pene- 

 trates to the very core of the articles. Otherwise the 

 imitations are generally perfect in every way. If the 

 inlaying art, or mattock hacks have been imitated, the parts 

 are generally tinkered up with wax to make them appear 

 old, but these fraudulent impositions are easily detected as 

 soon as they come under the eye of an expert. 



During the reign of the emperor T'ien Pao (35 9f) 

 (A.D. 742) there was an official foundry for the casting 

 of imitation copper wares. Notwithstanding their being 

 imitation wares they were of a very high order, being 

 not only elegant and artistic, but also pleasing to the eye 

 owing to the exterior being adorned with flowers and 

 grasses. In the official foundry the Ku Chi (T& $3) pattern 

 was sometimes changed into the Kin Ti (£& *fi). The Ch'i 

 (IS) took the place of the Kwei Long (0S ft), the Fang Sheng 



