CHINESE IDEAS OF ANTIQUES 59 



(% ft), the Luei Wen (ft tit), the Li (ft) the Chuan K'uan 

 (M ity, but in every case they entirely lost the clear patterns, 

 and ancient beauty, while the wares were poorer in quality 

 and less durable in use than their ancient models. The 

 skilled moulder of the " San Tai " period was evidently a 

 careful and clever artificer. The spreading of the wax was 

 clearly done. The interior ground work of the knobs and 

 bosses and other decorations were carefully smoothed. The 

 turning of edges, and rounding of corners both round and 

 square were neatly executed. The deep cavities and 

 grooves appear as if they had been gouged with a gouge and 

 forged into position by the hammer. The ground work of 

 the flowers and studs was decided and clear, and the wares 

 proportionate in all their parts. The Chinese antiquarian 

 has the following proverb to guide him in the selection of 

 antiques : 



" Though the Antique is solid it should be elegant. 

 Though its body is thick it should be light. 

 Though its sound is small it must be clear. 

 Though the colour is hard 1 it must be bright." 



m m % rfi st) 



(4 II JW ffi ID 



« m wl m m m 

 (ft m m w m w) 



It has been reasoned by some that all ." San Tai " wares 

 appeal to the mind as belonging to the Yin (}M) principle, and 

 all wares dating from the Han T'ang (M J$Z) periods, similarly 

 attributed to the Yang (101) principle in nature. The former 

 was indented while the latter were protruding in their 

 exterior appearance. 



The engravings on the " San Tai " period wares are 

 few, but the engravings on the Han and T'ang wares are 

 plentiful. The protruding wares were easily made by first 

 making the knob of flower and afterwards welding them to 

 the article with some kind of sealing wax. The indented 

 wares were more difficult to manufacture, because the 

 flowers or characters had first to be written on the articles 

 with wax and afterwards engraven in the metal. After 

 engraving, the whole vessel was rolled in fine sand which 

 filled up the carved indentations and thus prevented the metal 

 from running into, and filling up the engraving during the 

 process of firing. If the slightest flaw existed in the rolling 

 process the engravings would be completely obliterated, and 

 the intrinsic value of the article (even after rubbing) greatly 

 reduced. 



iA concept of metal hardness and colour cannot be separated, yet- 

 they are distinct. 



