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Lot Essay
The impression of the present seal is included in the Qianlong Baosou, [Album of Seals of the Qianlong Emperor] (fig.1), and Qingdai dihou xiyin pu [Compendium of Seals of Qing Emperors and Empresses], Qianlong juan, vol. 2, Beijing, 2013, p. 140 (fig. 2).
The Qianlong Emperor’s White Jade Wufu Xiangyong Seal (Excerpt)
Guo Fuxiang
The present seal measures 4.9 cm. high, 2.6 cm. wide, and 1.5 cm. long. The seal face is carved with a four-character inscription, Xiangyong wufu, ‘Embracing the Five Blessings’. It was specially commissioned by the Qianlong Emperror in the fifth-fourth year of his reign to celebrate his upcoming eightieth birthday.
This seal is recorded in the Qianlong Baosou currently housed in the Palace Museum, Beijing. Comparing the present seal with the record in the Baosou, it is evident that the material, size, calligraphic style of the inscription, all correspond to each other. According to the Baosou, this seal is one of the three-part group seals made during the Qianlong period, used as a frontispiece seal, along with the primary seal inscribed with Bazheng maonian, ‘Ruminating the Eight Principles of Governance at the Age of Eighty’, and a corner seal with the inscription Ziqiang buxi, ‘Continuous Self-strengthening’.
The fifty-fifth year of Qianlong (1790) was a crucial year for the Qianlong Emperor. Not only had he been in power for fifty-five years, but he was also about to celebrate his eightieth birthday. According to tradition, every fifth year of the cycle is known as a zheng shou year, which requires grand celebrations. In the eyes of the Qianlong Emperor, the year marked by the fifty-fifth anniversary, coinciding with his eightieth complete birthday, naturally aligns with the numbers of heaven and earth and is seen as a result of the blessings from the heavens, making it worthy of a grand celebration.
Therefore, as early as the Mid-Autumn Festival of the fifty-fourth year of Qianlong, the emperor began planning the celebratory activities, including the location and scale of the receptions at the palace, as well as the longevity tribute offerings from various places and vassal states. The creation of corresponding imperial seals was an essential aspect of the planning process. Qianlong ultimately decided to use Bazheng maonian as the main inscription for the primary seal, accompanied by Xiangyong wufu, and Ziqiang buxi for the other two seals.
After the Qianlong Emperor decided on the inscriptions for the three imperial seals in the fifty-fourth year of his reign, he began large-scale production. According to the records of the Qing Palace Neiwufu Zaoban Chu Huojidan: ‘On the 20th of the 10th month in the fifty-fourth year of the Qianlong reign, officials presented three pieces of greenish-white jades to the Qianlong Emperor along with the design of the inscriptions on papers….An imperial decree was issued to send these to Suzhou for production, with urgency placed on completing the seals…by the 24th day of the 12th month in the fifty-fourth year, eight sets of seals were delivered for presentation at the Maoqin Hall.’
As illustrated by the record above, the entire process took only a short two months, highlighting the Qianlong Emperor’s urgency at that time. Clearly, these were specially prepared for his eightieth birthday celebration and had to be completed on time. The seal to be offered by Christie’s Hong Kong, is the frontispiece seal from one of these eight sets, and it is the smallest set among all eight seals produced at that time. Although the seal is small, its craftsmanship is extremely fine, showcasing the exceptional artistry of the jade carvers in the Suzhou imperial workshop.
The Qianlong Emperor’s White Jade Wufu Xiangyong Seal (Excerpt)
Guo Fuxiang
The present seal measures 4.9 cm. high, 2.6 cm. wide, and 1.5 cm. long. The seal face is carved with a four-character inscription, Xiangyong wufu, ‘Embracing the Five Blessings’. It was specially commissioned by the Qianlong Emperror in the fifth-fourth year of his reign to celebrate his upcoming eightieth birthday.
This seal is recorded in the Qianlong Baosou currently housed in the Palace Museum, Beijing. Comparing the present seal with the record in the Baosou, it is evident that the material, size, calligraphic style of the inscription, all correspond to each other. According to the Baosou, this seal is one of the three-part group seals made during the Qianlong period, used as a frontispiece seal, along with the primary seal inscribed with Bazheng maonian, ‘Ruminating the Eight Principles of Governance at the Age of Eighty’, and a corner seal with the inscription Ziqiang buxi, ‘Continuous Self-strengthening’.
The fifty-fifth year of Qianlong (1790) was a crucial year for the Qianlong Emperor. Not only had he been in power for fifty-five years, but he was also about to celebrate his eightieth birthday. According to tradition, every fifth year of the cycle is known as a zheng shou year, which requires grand celebrations. In the eyes of the Qianlong Emperor, the year marked by the fifty-fifth anniversary, coinciding with his eightieth complete birthday, naturally aligns with the numbers of heaven and earth and is seen as a result of the blessings from the heavens, making it worthy of a grand celebration.
Therefore, as early as the Mid-Autumn Festival of the fifty-fourth year of Qianlong, the emperor began planning the celebratory activities, including the location and scale of the receptions at the palace, as well as the longevity tribute offerings from various places and vassal states. The creation of corresponding imperial seals was an essential aspect of the planning process. Qianlong ultimately decided to use Bazheng maonian as the main inscription for the primary seal, accompanied by Xiangyong wufu, and Ziqiang buxi for the other two seals.
After the Qianlong Emperor decided on the inscriptions for the three imperial seals in the fifty-fourth year of his reign, he began large-scale production. According to the records of the Qing Palace Neiwufu Zaoban Chu Huojidan: ‘On the 20th of the 10th month in the fifty-fourth year of the Qianlong reign, officials presented three pieces of greenish-white jades to the Qianlong Emperor along with the design of the inscriptions on papers….An imperial decree was issued to send these to Suzhou for production, with urgency placed on completing the seals…by the 24th day of the 12th month in the fifty-fourth year, eight sets of seals were delivered for presentation at the Maoqin Hall.’
As illustrated by the record above, the entire process took only a short two months, highlighting the Qianlong Emperor’s urgency at that time. Clearly, these were specially prepared for his eightieth birthday celebration and had to be completed on time. The seal to be offered by Christie’s Hong Kong, is the frontispiece seal from one of these eight sets, and it is the smallest set among all eight seals produced at that time. Although the seal is small, its craftsmanship is extremely fine, showcasing the exceptional artistry of the jade carvers in the Suzhou imperial workshop.