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Preface I
The
Chinese are most respectful in “Stones” in cultural history. China is rich in the mining of
semi-precious stones, of which the Shoushan Stone is the most precious and
treasured.
Shoushan
Stone comes from a small village called Shoushan
Village in the northern rural area
of Fujian. Surrounded by mountains, fields, pine
trees, bamboos, and a creek with gentle running water, the scenery is
quaint and poetic. The precious
stones are buried in the fields and mountains. Natural Shoushan Stone comes in yellow,
red, white, lime, green, blue colours and so on, with a smooth texture and
good luster. The patterns are varied
and unique. There are many different
kinds of Shoushan Stone and all are named differently according to their
place of production. There are a
total of 130 kinds, divided into three categories: Gaoshan, Qishan, and
Yueyang. Depending on the quality of
the stones, there is a further division of five different species: Tian
Stone, Shankeng Stone, Shuikeng Stone, Yueyangshan Stone, and Qishan Stone.
Besides
its natural value, Shoushan Stone is also the best material for stone
sculpture art. During the
North-South Dynasty about 1600 years ago, our ancestors sculpted stone
pigs, stone statues and stone birds to accompany tomb burials. Those then developed into centerpieces
for display. Over a long history of
artistic development, Shoushan Stone has gone through many changes, and has
excelled in a lot of creations.
Artistic techniques include (but are not limited to) circular,
spiral, dimensional, priknt, stamp, and relief sculpture. The subjects are unlimited: portraits,
animals, birds, landscapes, folklore and landmarks – all shine in their own
special way.
There
are also many different styles within Shoushan Stone Art. Historically there are two leads:
“Eastern Gate” and “Western Gate”.
The Eastern Gate is sharp and creative, the
Western Gate is traditional and classic.
Each has attracted its own group of disciples. In the past century up until the late
70s, group after group of fine arts graduates have been joining a
sculptural team. Using all the
latest principles in fine arts and painting, they modify the art of
sculpturing to create fresh and new styles of art pieces. These are called the College style, which
enhances upon the traditional style.
Tianhuang
stone is the best of the best amonst the Shoushan Stones, but its
production is rare; it is also known as the “King of Stones”. Most Emperors of the Qing Dynasty used
this stone for their royal stamps.
Every Chinese New Year, the Qing Emperor would place a piece of
Tianhuang stone in the centre of a worship table to pray for “Luck, Longevity,
Harvest, and Prosperity”. The
precious stone market has a saying, “Gold is easy to come by, but not the
Tianhuang stone”. That is the reason
why these Shoushan Stone sculptures are among the most precious
collectables around the world. The
demand is so high that there is also another saying: “It is easier to get a
million than to obtain one Stone”.
In 2004, the already distinguished Shoushan Stone has been dubbed
“National Stone”, ensuring a positive and definite future value.
Shi
CHEN
President,
The Research Society of Culture and Art of Shoushan Stone, Fujian
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