Jadeite Cabbage
Encyclopedia
The Jadeite Cabbage or Jadeite Cabbage with Insects is a piece of jadeite
carved into the shape of a Chinese cabbage
head, and with a locust and katydid camouflaged in the leaves. It is part of the collection of the National Palace Museum
in Taipei
, Taiwan
.
The ruffled semi-translucent appearance of the leaves is due to the combination of various natural colors of the jade
to recreate the color variations of a real cabbage. The figure was carved from a single piece of half-white, half-green jadeite which contained numerous imperfections such as cracks and discolored blotches. These flaws were incorporated into the sculpture and became the veins in the cabbage's stalks and leaves.
The sculpture is considered an allegory of female virtue with the white stalk symbolizing purity, the leaves denoting fertility and abundance and locust and katydid representing children.
's Yonghe Palace, the residence of the Qing Empire's Guangxu Emperor
's Consort Jin who probably received it as part of her dowry for her wedding to Guangxu, in 1889. Following the fall of the Qing Empire in the Chinese Revolution of 1911, the sculpture became part of the collection of the Palace Museum in the Forbidden City. Along with a core of that collection, the piece survived the Second Sino-Japanese War
(World War II
) and the Chinese Civil War
and was eventually relocated to Taiwan's National Palace Museum.
Jadeite
Jadeite is a pyroxene mineral with composition NaAlSi2O6. It is monoclinic. It has a Mohs hardness of about 6.5 to 7.0 depending on the composition. The mineral is dense, with a specific gravity of about 3.4. Jadeite forms solid solutions with other pyroxene endmembers such as augite and diopside ,...
carved into the shape of a Chinese cabbage
Chinese cabbage
Chinese cabbage can refer to two distinct varieties of Chinese leaf vegetables used often in Chinese cuisine. These vegetables are both related to the Western cabbage, and are of the same species as the common turnip...
head, and with a locust and katydid camouflaged in the leaves. It is part of the collection of the National Palace Museum
National Palace Museum
The National Palace Museum is an art museum in Taipei. It is the national museum of the Republic of China, and has a permanent collection of over 677,687 pieces of ancient Chinese artifacts and artworks, making it one of the largest in the world. The collection encompasses over 8,000 years of...
in Taipei
Taipei
Taipei City is the capital of the Republic of China and the central city of the largest metropolitan area of Taiwan. Situated at the northern tip of the island, Taipei is located on the Tamsui River, and is about 25 km southwest of Keelung, its port on the Pacific Ocean...
, Taiwan
Republic of China
The Republic of China , commonly known as Taiwan , is a unitary sovereign state located in East Asia. Originally based in mainland China, the Republic of China currently governs the island of Taiwan , which forms over 99% of its current territory, as well as Penghu, Kinmen, Matsu and other minor...
.
Description
The Jadeite Cabbage is a small sculpture, measuring only 18.7 cm by 9.1 cm and is 5.07 cm thick, "hardly larger than a human hand".The ruffled semi-translucent appearance of the leaves is due to the combination of various natural colors of the jade
Jade
Jade is an ornamental stone.The term jade is applied to two different metamorphic rocks that are made up of different silicate minerals:...
to recreate the color variations of a real cabbage. The figure was carved from a single piece of half-white, half-green jadeite which contained numerous imperfections such as cracks and discolored blotches. These flaws were incorporated into the sculpture and became the veins in the cabbage's stalks and leaves.
The sculpture is considered an allegory of female virtue with the white stalk symbolizing purity, the leaves denoting fertility and abundance and locust and katydid representing children.
History
The sculptor of the Jadeite Cabbage is unknown. It was first displayed in the Forbidden CityForbidden City
The Forbidden City was the Chinese imperial palace from the Ming Dynasty to the end of the Qing Dynasty. It is located in the middle of Beijing, China, and now houses the Palace Museum...
's Yonghe Palace, the residence of the Qing Empire's Guangxu Emperor
Guangxu Emperor
The Guangxu Emperor , born Zaitian of the Aisin-Gioro clan, was the eleventh emperor of the Manchurian Qing Dynasty, and the ninth Qing emperor to rule over China. His reign lasted from 1875 to 1908, but in practice he ruled, under Empress Dowager Cixi's influence, only from 1889 to 1898...
's Consort Jin who probably received it as part of her dowry for her wedding to Guangxu, in 1889. Following the fall of the Qing Empire in the Chinese Revolution of 1911, the sculpture became part of the collection of the Palace Museum in the Forbidden City. Along with a core of that collection, the piece survived the Second Sino-Japanese War
Second Sino-Japanese War
The Second Sino-Japanese War was a military conflict fought primarily between the Republic of China and the Empire of Japan. From 1937 to 1941, China fought Japan with some economic help from Germany , the Soviet Union and the United States...
(World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
) and the Chinese Civil War
Chinese Civil War
The Chinese Civil War was a civil war fought between the Kuomintang , the governing party of the Republic of China, and the Communist Party of China , for the control of China which eventually led to China's division into two Chinas, Republic of China and People's Republic of...
and was eventually relocated to Taiwan's National Palace Museum.
Notability
The Jadeite Cabbage has been called the "most famous masterpiece" of the entire National Palace Museum, and along with the Meat-shaped Stone and the Mao Gong Ding, it is considered one of the Three Treasures of the National Palace Museum. It has been chosen by the public as the most important item in the museum's entire collection. Controversy erupted in 2009 when it was discovered that souvenir copies of the Jadeite Cabbage sold at the museum were being made in China rather than Taiwan.External links
- Jadeite Cabbage with Insects at the National Palace Museum website
- Leslie Hook. "The Jade Cabbage" Wall Street Journal. 27 July 2007.