Antiques with golden eyes

"What? Zigang tile?" Fatty Li couldn't hold his balance after hearing Zheng Congyuan's words. He stretched his neck and stared at the jade plaque with his eyes, as if he wanted to see the Zigang tile in his eyes.

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None of the people in the hall laughed at Fatty Li's performance, including Mr. Qian and Lin Xifeng, who couldn't take their eyes away.

Without it, Zigang brand is too precious, it can be said to be a rare treasure!

The Zigang brand is named after Lu Zigang, a master sculptor of the Ming Dynasty.

Lu Zigang, whose birth and death dates are unknown, lived approximately between the Jiajing and Wannian years of the Ming Dynasty. He was the first craftsman in history to be honored as a jade carving master.

Because of his superb jade carving techniques, he was regarded as the founder of jade craftsmanship by many jade carving professionals in later generations.

In addition to their skills, the jade workers also have a special admiration for Lu Zigang.

Everyone knows that craftsmen had little status in ancient times, but Lu Zigang was different. He was on an equal footing with the celebrities and dignitaries of the time.

Many famous scholars have been waiting for a long time to get a piece of jade crafted by him.

The ancients believed that everything was of inferior quality, but only reading was good, there was a house of gold in the book, and there was beauty in the book. In addition to reading, any occupation had to be ranked behind.

How can a master sculptor who can make scholars respect him not be envied by future generations of jade craftsmen?

Shen Yu is very familiar with Zigang tiles and has a lot of fate, because when he was in "Baoyu Xuan", he accidentally got a "treasure in the pot", and this treasure in the pot was a Ming Dynasty Zigang tile!

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As for whether it is the real Zigang brand, Shen Yu doesn't know.

Why do you say this? Because there are two types of Zigang tablets, one is Zigang tablet and the other is Zigang tablet carved by Lu Zigang.

It’s a mouthful, but that’s the truth. Just like Slim Gold Style was invented by Song Huizong, not all Slim Gold Style calligraphy was written by Song Huizong.

Nowadays, all the jade tablets imitating the Lu Zigang shape on the market, including signed ones, unmarked ones, jade ones, stone ones, and jade ones. As long as they are square, most of them are called Zigang tablets.

Are there any Zigang tablets that are truly carved by Lu Zigang himself?

Yes! But it’s very rare.

It is said that there are only a few dozen Zigang tablets that were actually carved by Lu Zigang himself, and all of them are collected by well-known museums.

99.9% of the so-called Zigang brand circulating on the market are fakes. If you come across a copy of the Zigang brand from the Ming Dynasty or the Qianlong period of the Qing Dynasty, the price will be sky-high.

This is well-founded. When Zhongchenlou was alive, he took Shen Yu to visit a master jade collector. This man had a special liking for Zigang tablets and collected more than a thousand Zigang tablets of different styles and materials.<

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Most of them are imitations of the Qing Dynasty, and a few are imitations of the Ming Dynasty, but there is not a single Zigang medal actually made by Lu Zigang himself.

Wang Xizhi, the sage of calligraphy, Du Fu, the sage of poetry, and Wu Daozi, the sage of painting. If there is one person who is the jade sage, it must be Lu Zigang.

Legend has it that he had three things to do when making jade: "If the color of jade is not beautiful, don't make it; if the quality of jade is not good, don't make it; and if the quality of jade is not good, don't make it."

Most of the jade selected are white jade and sapphire. The jade must be pure and flawless, and the whole body must be of the same color.

Jade making can be understood as the general term for carving jade, cutting jade, and carving jade.

The jade made by Lu Zigang has convex sun patterns, hollow carvings and negative line carvings, all of which are exquisite.

The raised pattern refers to the raised pattern that is higher than the plane of the jade plaque, which is the relief.

Hollow-open carving literally means hollow carving and open-work carving.

Yin line carving, Yin line carving refers to the hairspring craftsman, who can carve animals and plants as thin as a hairspring on the jade article, and the flies, wings and insects are clearly visible.

This is equivalent to saying that Lu Zigang knows all carving techniques. Generally speaking, it is good for a jade worker to be proficient in one skill in his life. He can be proficient in them all and achieve perfection. What else can this be but a Jade Sage?

Exquisite jade quality and top-notch carving work come together, and it’s no wonder that the Zigang brand is so cherished.

Lu Zigang's jade carving craftsmanship is a unique skill. It is the only one with no other name and is called "Kunwu Dao".

Modern people have no way of knowing what this Kunwu Sword is because it has been lost.

There are two main theories. The first one is that the Kunwu knife is an extremely sharp carving knife that cuts jade like clay. It is said to be diamond.

The second type of theory is more credible, saying that Kunwu Dao is not only a carving knife, but also a skillful carving technique called "Kunwu Dao Technique".

With this Kunwu knife technique, you can carve jade without using a weight machine.

The weight machine is a kind of jade grinding machine used to make jade in the Ming and Qing Dynasties. There are large and small ones. The smaller ones are similar to today's sewing machines. They can be used with both hands and feet, or several people can work together to open, punch, and cut jade.

, grinding jade, drilling jade, eviscerating, carving, polishing, etc. get twice the result with half the effort.

Lu Zigang was able to carve the beautiful and exquisite Zigang plaque without the help of this machine, which is amazing.

"Shen Yu, come and take a look." Li Hanlin's words pulled Shen Yu out of his thoughts.

Now everyone in the hall has looked at Li Hanlin's Zigang card, except Shen Yu who has not yet seen it.

Anyone who participates in the treasure appraisal meeting can get started. Shen Yu walked over quickly, wiped his hands with a towel, and very carefully took the Zigang medal made of mutton-fat white jade in his hand.

This is a typical Siliuzigang tablet, also called Siliu tablet. Simply put, the height (length) of the jade tablet is six centimeters and the width is four centimeters. This standard has been handed down since ancient times and is the most standard among jade tablets.

size.

Anything is too much, just like a gold necklace that is too thick and unattractive. It looks less like a necklace and more like beads or a large string of beads.

After countless people carved this Zigang tile, I feel that the 46th tile best embodies the beauty of the jade tile.

The head of the tablet has holes but is not threaded. The pattern is Ruyi pattern and has no design.

What is engraved on the front of the jade plaque is a scholar rushing to take the exam carrying a bookcase on his back on a mountain path. In the distance, you can vaguely see the lush pine forest giant peaks, and not far away is a rushing stream.

The composition is complex but well-organized within a small area, the characters are lifelike, and the natural landscape makes the viewer feel as if they are actually there.

There is a poem on the back: Xiao Temple is empty at night, the ancient stream is in danger of bridges in autumn; warehouses are crowded together, where can I find a store?

The font is powerful, elegant and natural.

After acquiring this jade tablet, it has a delicate texture, like gelatin. Shen Yu has also seen many jade tablets and jade pendants in "Baoyu Xuan", but there are few, or even none, that can compare with this Zigang tablet.

If I were to find one, it would be the "treasure in the pot" that I got, the Ming Dynasty Zigang tile, which is comparable to it.

The whole piece of jade is white, translucent and smooth, and it looks like holding a piece of mutton in your hand. This is a manifestation of frequent hand-to-hand play.

If it is a jade plaque that has not been played with for many years, no matter what the material is, even if it is also mutton-fat white jade, it will feel raw when you pick it up.

Turning it over and taking a closer look, the jade plaque has the same color without any tinge, and it belongs to the ancient jade handed down from Damen.

***The author has something to say***

ps: Lu Zigang is called Lu Zigang in the "Antique Guide" written by Zhao Ruzhen. Now they all call him Zigang, so I also use Lu Zigang.

I'm very busy today. I'll eat something and start coding Chapter 2 right away. Please recommend me.