清嘉慶 墨白玉「飛睇亭」璽JIAQING PERIOD (1796-1820)清嘉慶 墨白玉「飛睇亭」璽印文：飛睇亭本拍品印文著錄於：郭福祥主編，《故宮博物院藏清代帝后寶璽印譜．嘉慶卷二》，第九冊，北京，2005年，頁159。1 ¾ in. (4.5 cm.) high, boxThe Imperial Black and White Jade Feiditing Seal of Emperor JiaqingGuo Fuxiang Palace seals are integral to the collection of imperial seals of Qing emperors. Mostly associated with halls or gardens on the imperial grounds, they either document the exact names of such places or allude to their specific functions, thereby shedding more light on these magnificent structures. The Feiditing seal of Emperor Jiaqing recently consigned to Christie’s Hong Kong is clearly one such example. Carved from black and white jade and surmounted by a chilong finial, the current lot measures 2.92 cm long, 1.5 cm wide and 4.5 cm high, and bears a three-character inscription Feiditing (Pavilion of Lofty View) in relief. This seal is well recorded in Jiaqing baosou (Catalogue of Emperor Jiaqings Imperial Seals) now kept by the Palace Museum of Beijing. The material, dimension and even the style and composition of the seal script all match the descriptions therein, placing the authenticity of this imperial Jiaqing seal beyond doubt. As indicated in the same catalogue, the lot belongs to a three-piece ensemble, with this seal being the yinshou (frontispiece) seal and the others being two yajiao (ending) seals inscribed respectively with shiyuanweiming (‘With clear views comes vision’) and xiaguanerhua (‘Be enlightened and so will the masses’). This essay will compile and outline available information on the current lot, in a bid to help readers better understand its significance. In fact, both the naming and construction of Feiditing, a scenic spot in Anlanyuan (Garden of Calm Waves) at Yuanmingyuan, are closely tied to Emperor Qianlong’s grand inspection tours in southern China. A privately-owned, renowned garden on the Yangtze Delta during the Ming and Qing dynasties, Anlanyuan is situated in northwest Yanguan in Haining, Zhejiang province. Initially a property of Wang Kang (Prince of Anhua), the garden was renovated by Chen Yujian (vice-minister of the Court of Imperial Sacrifices) during the Wanli reign of Emperor Shenzong and renamed Yuyuan (Garden of Retreat). Later, Chen Yuanlong, a great grandson from the clan of Chen Yujian who once served as grand secretary of Wenyuan Pavilion during the Qing dynasty, inherited and renamed the garden Suichuyuan (Garden of Wish Fulfilment). Following his death, the garden was bequeathed to his son Chen Bangzhi (a court historian at the Hanlin Academy), who oversaw its extension to cover some 100 acres. Celebrating simplicity and antiquity, the new garden boasted over 30 scenic spots. As a family villa of the Chens, the place was also known among locals as Chenyuan (Chens Garden). In the 27th year of the Qianlong reign (AD 1762), the emperor made a stop here while on his third southern tour, during which he showed much appreciation for the garden’s landscaping art and renamed it Anlanyuan. Such was the emperor’s admiration that he further commissioned a drawing of the garden so that it could be recreated on similar terrain in the imperial gardens. Eventually he settled on a site in a scenic area formerly known as Siyishuwu (Library of Four Seasons) on the north bank of Fuhai (Sea of Blessing) in Yuanmingyuan, which ‘with some minor adjustments here and there, was transformed instantaneously into the same layout as that of the Chens Garden,’ showcasing similar landscaping features and sharing the same name as its prototype in Haining. As to why Qianlong should have had a copy of Anlanyuan built in the imperial gardens, Remarks on Anlanyuan penned by the emperor himself holds a clue: ‘Choosing the name anlan was not so much an effort to indulge myself in the pleasures stemming from springs and rocks but to convey my wish for a bumper harvest for all, and therein lies the true intent of the whole endeavour.’[1] It is indeed true that, despite the shared name, Qianlong was inspired and motivated by very different reasons to want a replica built at Yuanmingyuan. While renaming the garden of Haining as Anlanyuan represented his wish for the success of his seawall project and the mitigation of floods across the nation, the Yuanmingyuan version conveyed instead his longing for favourable weather, which was critical to the well-being of his subjects and could thus be seen as an extension of his earlier wish for calm waters. Upon the completion of Anlanyuan at Yuanmingyuan, Qianlong renamed several attractions and went on to compose Ten Imperial Poems on Anlanyuan to mark the occasion. Feiditing was among the ten scenes personally designated by the emperor. Emperor Jiaqing was also no stranger to Anlanyuan in Haining. The 24-year-old Prince Yongyan, the fifteenth son of Kangxi who went on to become Emperor Jiaqing, accompanied his father on the latter’s last grand tour in the 49th year of the Qianlong reign (AD 1784) and was likewise a guest at Anlanyuan in Haining.[2] It is almost certain that he also toured and was enthralled by the garden. Though no grand tour to the south was organized during his reign, Jiaqing seemed to have also taken a personal interest in Anlanyuan, either visiting the garden during his stay at Yuanmingyuan or composing poems in praise of its scenery and of the great achievement of Qianlong’s seawall project. He even commissioned ten seal ensembles, including the Feiditing set, inscribed with the names of the imperial Anlanyuan structures designated by Qianlong. While both Anlanyuan in Haining, Zhejiang and its Yuanmingyuan counterpart carry the blessings of Qianlong and Jiaqing, they also underscore the lineage and legacy of the political and governance ideals of father and son, as vividly demonstrated by the ten Anlanyuan ensembles of palace seals made for Emperor Jiaqing. Each of these ten ensembles features one yinshou seal and two yajiao seals, an approach borrowed directly from and employed extensively throughout the Qianlong reign. This type of works can be divided into two categories. The first group is perhaps best described as palace seal ensembles, each consisting of a yinshou seal inscribed with the name of a palatial structure and two yajiao seals bearing poetic phrases or aphorisms that serve to illustrate the meaning of and inspiration behind the name. The second category can be referred to as proverb seal ensembles, with the yinshou and yajiao seals of each three-piece set all inscribed with proverbs or literary allusions that echo and complement each other. Following in his father’s footsteps, Jiaqing had no fewer than seventy such ensembles made.[3] The set featuring the current lot clearly fits into the first category. Given the near-identical approach taken by Jiaqing and Qianlong to seal-making, it seems to suggest quite a deliberate attempt on the part of Jiaqing to emulate his father Qianlong. While Jiaqing’s emulation of Qianlong in seal-making can be viewed as part of the imperial lineage and legacy, the inscription of the current lot seems more indicative of Jiaqing’s own heart and soul, which is in turn crucial to our interpretation of this work. As mentioned above, it belongs to one of the many palace seal ensembles commissioned by Jiaqing, each comprising three works with closely related inscriptions, and each with two yajiao seals pointing to the owner’s interpretation of the name of a specific palatial structure. Given that, the author suggests that any individual work from this category should be examined as a group of three. By the same token, the current lot can only be duly understood by placing it side by side with the accompanying shiyuanweiming and xiaguanerhua seals and within the historical context that shaped their owner Jiaqing. Inspired by Longhongting (Pavilion of Dragon Brook) in Hangzhou, Feiditing is a small four-column pavilion sitting atop an artificial rockscape in Anlanyuan, Yuanmingyuan, and commanding a bird’s eye view of the scenery that Qing emperors often delighted in during their stays at Yuanmingyuan. By reading Qianlong’s imperial poems, one can see that whenever the emperor visited this pavilion and took in the panoramic view beyond the imperial grounds, he would find himself greeted by hectare after hectare of sprawling fields of crops, which to him was ‘a visceral reminder of farmers’ constant battle with the elements.’[4] T0 Emperor Qianlong, what sprang to mind was the hardship suffered by those tilling and toiling on the land come rain or shine, often with bare-bones equipment and scant protection. Time and again, this reminded him of the seawall project in Zhejiang and rekindled his wish for good weather, flood control, and a peaceful and prosperous existence for all. However, this scenery did not quite stir up the same sentiment in Emperor Jiaqing, who instead pondered his governing duties, and this later found its artistic expression in the shiyuanweiming and xiaguanerhua seals. Shiyuanweiming, meaning ‘with clear views comes vision’, is a quotation from the chapter of Taijia in Shangshu (Book of Documents), which recounts the story of Taijia (a king of the Shang dynasty) being banished to a palace at Tong and subsequently given a royal welcome back to the capital Bo by Yi Yin. Over a discussion about statecraft, Yi Yin mentioned shiyuanweiming and tingdeweicong (‘With an open ear to wisdom comes sound judgement’) in his advice to the king. The two phrases essentially mean that from sight and sound emerge insight and vision, yet what we see often clouds our judgement, hence the importance of staying clear-sighted and judicious; likewise, we can easily be led astray by what we hear, hence the need to listen out for wisdom so as to be able to tell good from bad. It is therefore important for a monarch to be mindful of his moral integrity as well as his own words and actions. He should be good at taking advice and be quick at spotting falsehood and duplicity. In every sense, shiyuanweiming sums up the level of integrity and personal qualities required of a monarch. On the other hand, xiaguanerhua is mentioned in the context of Hexagram Guan in the Book of Changes, ‘Ablution, but not yet the offering, has been made. People all look up [to the sovereign] and come to be enlightened.’ Here guan means to gaze or observe, while Hexagram Guan, as explained in the book, illustrates the principles of and approach to bringing about social enlightenment. In order to lead by example, a ruler should bear in mind the idea of xiaguanerhua, which dictates the important dynamic between a monarch and his subjects. More specifically, it suggests that transformation, admiration, allegiance and ultimately enlightenment will come about when people witness the grandeur, devotion, majesty and solemnity with which their sovereign conducts rituals and ceremonies. In a word, xiaguanerhua highlights the significance of a ruler being a role model for his people in achieving enlightenment. In a sense, both shiyuanweiming and xiaguanerhua explain why a ruler should be a beacon of integrity for all to observe and look up to, a theme well encapsulated in feidi (lofty view’). With this knowledge, it should be easy to understand why Jiaqing should choose to have shiyuanweiming and xiaguanerhua inscribed on the two pieces accompanying the Feiditing seal. One may even argue that the inscriptions of the entire ensemble make manifest Jiaqing’s ideas as to the kind of moral character and governing approach a ruler should embody, or even serve as a reminder or impetus for him to strive to serve his people and nation. Back then, imperial seal-making was taken extremely seriously, with inscriptions carefully chosen and echoing the emperor’s thoughts and tastes, a fact that has been made abundantly clear in our effort to understand the Feiditing ensemble as whole. Having commissioned the ten Anlanyuan ensembles of palace seals to which the Feiditing set belongs, Emperor Jiaqing ordered the finished works to be placed in a wooden box and put on display in Anlanyuan of Yuanmingyuan. Unfortunately, the entire group went missing in the ensuing tumultuous years. A seal inscribed with xiaguanerhua now in the collection of the Palace Museum of Beijing has a yellow ribbon attached, each side showing an entry written in ink. One side reads, “A green jade xiaguanerhua seal submitted by Wang Jinlu on the twentieth day of the fifth year of the Tongzhi reign.” The other side states, “Inspected by artisan Zhou Wenyu at the jade workshop.” The fifth year of the Tongzhi reign corresponds to AD 1866, which was possibly when the xiaguanerhua seal was handed back into the care of the imperial storage. As a precaution, it was inspected and certified for authenticity by an artisan working at the Palace Workshops. The material and finial of the xiaguanerhua seal are completely identical to the Feiditing seal to be offered by Christie’s, suggesting that the two were carved from the same boulder and belong in the same ensemble. The current lot features a greyish black body and a white finial in the form of a chilong. This masterful use of the natural pigments of the Hetian green jade, coupled with the meticulous and skilful rendering of the finial and inscription, is testament to the extraordinary craftsmanship of a master carver at work. [1] Hongli, ‘On Anlanyuan’, Qing Gaozong yuzhi wen erji [Imperial Prose of Emperor Qianlong, Collection 2], vol. 10. [2] Yongyan, ‘Ten poems in praise of Anlanyuan’, Qing Renzong yuzhi shi chuji [Imperial Poems of Emperor Jiaqing, Collection 1] vol. 7. [3] Guo Fuxiang, Ming Qing dihou xiyin [Ming and Qing Imperial Seals], International Culture Publishing Company, Beijing, 2003, p. 169. [4] Hongli, ‘Ten poems in praise of Anlanyuan’, Qing Gaozong yuzhi shi sanji [Imperial Poems of Emperor Qianlong, Collection 3], vol. 39.Details AN IMPERIAL BLACK AND WHITE JADE ‘DRAGON’ SEALJIAQING PERIOD (1796-1820)The columnar platform is surmounted by a finial carved in the rounded as a dragon standing proudly foursquare with a bi-furcated tail. The seal face is carved with a three-character inscription in relief, Fei di ting, Pavilion of Aerial Perspective.‘The impression of the current seal is included in Gugong bowuyuan cang Qingdai dihou xiyin pu [An Album of Impressions of the Qing-dynasty Emperors and Empresses’ seals in the Palace Museum, Beijing], Jiaqing juan, no. 2, Beijing 2005, p. 159.1 ¾ in. (4.5 cm.) high, box Provenance A European private collection, by repute Conditions of sale