Antiques with golden eyes

The Xuande incense burner was designed and supervised by Zhu Zhanji himself in the third year of Xuande in the Ming Dynasty. Then the Ministry of Industry carefully selected a batch of incense burners from across the country to cast them.

It is worth mentioning that the Xuande stove was the first incense burner made of brass as the main material in Chinese history. Since then, the Xuande stove has become synonymous with incense burners.

Of course, people also habitually refer to it as: Xuanlu.

Legend has it that the production process of Xuan furnace is extremely exquisite, using wind-milled copper as the main raw material, and also adding some precious precious metals such as gold and silver. After repeated refining no less than twelve times, this famous

Xuande Furnace.

Although Xuanlu has a long-standing reputation in the antique world, it is surprising and regrettable that as of now, globally, whether it is a professional trading venue such as an auction, or a mixed antique black market, or even the collections of major museums,

There is not one piece of equipment that can be definitely identified as the standard instrument of Xuan furnace.

The so-called standard instrument is used for comparison when the appraisal is in doubt.

But there is no such standard instrument for Xuanlu.

No!

Not a single one!

The so-called "Zhenxuan" specifically refers to the first batch cast in the third year of Xuande, under the supervision of Zhu Zhanji, Emperor Xuanzong of the Ming Dynasty. They seem to have disappeared in the long river of history, leaving only a legend.

The current market for Xuande furnaces is very interesting. There are no genuine ones, but many fake ones. Some ancient fake Xuande furnaces, such as those imitated in the Ming Dynasty, have high collection value!

That's right, that is to say, on the basis of good appearance, good materials, good casters and age, fake Xuan furnaces are also very valuable.

The artistic value of some Xuan furnace imitations is indeed very high, especially some imitations of Xuan furnaces in the early Ming Dynasty, and a small number of imitations during the Kangxi and Qian dynasties in the Qing Dynasty. They have reached a certain level in terms of craftsmanship, shape and cultural charm.

High level.

Therefore, it is not surprising that when certain "Xuanlu" pieces of outstanding quality are put on the auction block, fierce bidding will often take place, and the prices can be astonishingly high in the millions, or even tens of millions or even tens of millions.

The darling of the antique collecting world.

Shen Yu gently put down the copper stove in his hand, looked at Mr. Wang calmly, and asked in a very calm tone: "Old Wang, I wonder where you got this copper stove?"

Mr. Wang was about to pick up the teacup and drink tea. After hearing Shen Yu's question, he slowly put down the teacup, with a look of reminiscence on his face, "This three-legged ear-burning stove was bought from abroad."

Shen Yu nodded slightly, and then asked: "If it's convenient, can you tell us its origin in detail?"

His humble and sincere attitude makes it hard to refuse.

Mr. Wang smiled slightly and seemed to be happy to share this treasure hunting experience, "What's the inconvenience of this? Speaking of which, it was really a chance to get this Xuanlu. Well, I accidentally discovered it on my way to a foreign country to inspect business.

its.

"It was in a small town in the United States. When I went out for a walk after breakfast in the morning, I accidentally discovered a small Taoist temple hidden in a green bamboo forest.

“The distinctive architectural style of white walls, green tiles and cornices is undoubtedly a unique presentation of our Chinese culture on a foreign land.

"What's even more special is that this is actually a private Taoist temple."

As soon as these words came out, except for Shen Yu, both Gu Zhengyan and Pei Yuqin were slightly startled, with a look of surprise on their faces.

Gu Zhengyan couldn't help but frown slightly, and said with doubts on his face: "Old Wang, are you old and confused? I naturally know a thing or two about the existence of Taoist temples abroad, and there are quite a few.

"In the United States, England, Japan, Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Australia, New Zealand, Mexico and many other places, there are indeed many Taoist temples dotted all over the place.

"However, the idea of ​​this private Taoist temple is really confusing. What is going on? How did it come into being?"

Mr. Wang chuckled, the look of pride on his face became even greater, and he said with a hint of ridicule: "Gu, this is where you are ignorant. There are indeed many Taoist temples abroad that are run by private individuals.

“And the expenses of these Taoist temples mostly depend on the savings of the founders.

"The same goes for this Taoist temple called 'Chun Yuan Guan'.

"Compared with those large-scale Taoist temples in China with a long history, Chunyuan Temple is really small, with only two entrances to the house.

“The three main rooms in the front yard were cleverly put together into one main hall to worship the Three Purities, while the back yard was where the Taoist priests lived.

“It’s not big, but it has a long history. It was built in the 1920s.

“Thinking back to that time, being able to build such a Taoist temple to inherit Chinese culture in a foreign land must have gone through a lot of hardships and hardships.

“And this Taoist temple has another very special feature. It has a small wing in the front yard, which is specially designed for pilgrims to rest for free.

"If you don't have a place to stay, you can spend the night there.

"There, you can feel a kind of pure kindness and tolerance. There is no charge for tea, no charge for incense, no charge for rolling lots and clearing lots. Even the merit box commonly seen in Taoist temples is nowhere to be seen.

"It relies on generations of temple owners working hard to support it with their own savings. This persistence is really respectable and touching in today's materialistic and utilitarian era.

“When I went there in 1995, the Taoist temple had been passed down to the third generation, the grandson of the person who founded the Taoist temple.

"At this time, the Taoist temple had a huge shortage of funds, and it even reached the point where it was unsustainable. In desperation, the owner of the temple had no choice but to start selling some antiques in the temple to maintain the daily expenses and repairs of the Taoist temple.

"Not to mention, the number of antiques inside is quite impressive, and the quality is extremely high.

“The cups, plates, and bowls are all exquisite products from the Guangxu official kilns of the Qing Dynasty. The seats and benches are also made of precious old mahogany. Even the lucky draw holder is made of rosewood, and it is still the most precious. of sea yellow.

“It is conceivable that when the Taoist temple was first established, it must have received support and donations from many people living overseas who loved Chinese culture.

“At that time, I was just visiting the Taoist temple briefly, and I didn’t know that the temple owner would sell antiques.

"I rushed over after hearing the news, but it was already too late. Many good items had already been bought by others.

"Aside from items clearly marked not for sale, there were only three copper stoves for burning incense.

“And I fell in love with this thing at first sight.

"It was thrown in a corner of the yard at that time, because the Taoist temple had just experienced a rare hailstorm not long ago. Many tiles were smashed into pieces, and the inside of the temple was in a mess."