If you don’t collect the jade carving masterpiece “Live Ring Chain Carving”, it will be gone!

Speaking of the jade carving technique of live ring carving, I believe many jade lovers have a deep impression of it, it is simply: cool!

This craft can definitely be called a "signature skill", and the difficulty index, patience index, and perseverance index are simply off the charts!

In a word: waste materials, waste work, and if it goes wrong, waste people...

A master said that this technique is not something that can be achieved with just talent and patience. If you don’t have enough physical strength or energy, forget it…

The interlocking links in jade carving are called live ring chain carving, also known as chain work.

It is derived from the round carving technique, and it has single, double or multiple chains, and usually appears on stoves, bottles, lamps, towers, incense sticks, pieces, locks, pendants, etc.

It is both a component of the utensil and a means of decoration, just like the icing on the cake.

The original movable ring technique originated from the jade drilling technology. Later, with the widespread application of technology, the ring-making technique appeared in the Spring and Autumn Period and the Warring States Period.

However, it was during the reign of Emperor Qianlong that movable ring and chain carvings on jade reached their peak. There's nothing you can do about it. He has power and money, and he's an unabashed emperor who worships Yu.

It can be said that the jade wares of the Qianlong period are famous throughout the world for their exquisite craftsmanship! To use a modern word it is "craftsman spirit".

The "Qianlong craftsmen" of that period had two unique skills that were not passed on to outsiders - movable ring chain carving and filigree and gold inlay.

It is mainly used in jade utensils and jade ornaments. It is said that only apprentices who can inherit the master's mantle are qualified to learn and pass it on.

This means that just because you want to learn, it’s not that there will be someone to teach you; it also depends on your qualifications!

Therefore, chain-carved jade artifacts were also considered royal jade carvings at the time. After development during the Ming and Qing dynasties, the chain carving technique became more and more perfect.

Emperor Qianlong's Imperial Treasure: Tianhuang Three-Chain Seal

In fact, carving a whole movable ring is as difficult as hollow carving.

Its greatest difficulty lies in taking the material but not separating it from the body.

In short, first determine the length of each ring and the width of the gap between the rings, hollow out the gap, round the edges and corners, and hollow out the middle part.

There cannot be any mistakes when carving. The rings must be linked together, of equal length and in the same direction. If one ring is damaged, all the previous work will be wasted.

It often takes several years of hard work to complete a superb hollow ring work. The whole creation process is permeated with the painstaking efforts of the jade carver.

Nowadays, with the increasing shortage of seed materials, works with one or two loose rings can still be seen occasionally. However, it is rare to use a whole piece of material to make a movable ring jade bottle.

Moreover, it is difficult to make and consumes a lot of energy, so there are not many buyers and only a very few collectors pay attention to it.

The talented men, beautiful women, skilled craftsmen are all gone, but the heroes of today are still to be seen.

If no one does it, maybe in fifty years we will only be able to see them in museums. As people who love traditional culture, we can also pay more attention to these arts that are about to be lost.

Artists who are dedicated to passing on craftsmanship deserve the highest respect.

Thanks to every craftsman who sticks to tradition!

fruit

fcgc33