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Hello all:
If you are looking desperately for the perfect Christmas gift for that friend or family member who loves Asian art, eBay is now offering you the solution to your problem. See link and photographs below. This massive carved jade ship rests on an intricately carved wooden base. It weighs about 2,000 pounds, and according to the description is modelled after the royal vessel "used by the Emperor and Empress during Ch'in Dynasty, 240 B.C." It features nine fierce dragon form heads at the front hull along with numerous carved lanterns, sails, pavilions, structures, chambers, banners, standing figures, and hanging chains and accents throughout the superstructure. It measures 108" H x 160" W x 38" D. If you want the item shipped by the United States Postal Service, you will be disappointed. Only free local pickup is available or you can arrange shipping yourself. So, simply add it to your cart or buy it now. Apparently, the make an offer option is not available and you will need to charge $185,000 to your credit card. I do not think that returns are allowed. So, please consider your potential purchase carefully before hitting the Buy it Now button.
Regards,
Errol
Hi Errol,
I saw this piece a few months ago and out of interest contacted the seller.
The only question I asked him was how did he know it was nephrite jade and not say serpentine or bowenite?
He very quickly replied to me that no tests were performed to prove it was jade. He just knew by looking at it.
The carved ship is massive. I personally have never seen anything like it before. Hence my curiosity!
If I lived in the United States I would have definitely gone to his gallery and inspected it. You would have to have a mansion and be eccentric to even consider this beast of a carving. It equates to about $220 per kilo for this excluding the base (just my guess).
Mark
@imperialfinegems I think Greeno lives down there. Maybe he can go check it out for us all and let us know if it is some big modern monstrosity or something the Qianlong Emperor's children played with.
Hi Johnshoe,
Judging by the pictures it's definitely not a Qianlong carving. It's on my opinion from the later part of the 20th century.
Still its interesting to say the least.
Mark
To be quite frank I think this is an awful piece of kitsch. It's astonishing that the seller can tell it is jade just by looking at it. I love small jade and even serpentine figures and objects. However, it's their smallness that makes them attractive.
As Mark points out, an awful lot of items sold as jade are serpentine or some similar material. Mark they often mention the scratch test as establishing the distinction. How reliable is that? Surely, there are more reliable methods for distinguishing between jade and other similar looking materials.
Errol
Hi Errol,
The scratch test is never conclusive. However it can quickly determine if the material is serpentine. Bowenite is more difficult as it's a harder stone. You don't need to scratch the life out of the intended victim. Just a 2mm mark is sufficient.
Bowenite can be identified by examining the piece in question. If you see highly translucent clear pieces it probably bowenite. Same if you see white blotchy areas. Run away. Most jade simulation is like this.
In conjunction with other tests the sg (specific gravity) will identify if it's jade. However with a piece of this magnitude it's impossible to perform. You would have to remove pieces etc.
Getting back to the scratch test. It's important that you use say a pen knife and not hardened steel etc like nails. If the mark/residue is white it means the pen knife is harder than the subject. If it's black it is the other way around and you have a nice piece of either nephrite or jadeite (unlikely as jadeite jade is harder than nephrite jade) . You can also buy the Mohs test sticks that are designed for specific hardness. But I think they are expensive to buy.
A UV test will also help determine if the material is dyed. But it's not conclusive as they now have dyes/other that can beat this. Dyed jadeite is very common but not so with nephrite.
It's true that a experienced dealer can determine jade not by looking at it. But by holding/touching it. They rarely need to perform other tests. I have not personally performed a SG test for a long time. I do use hefting as jadeite and nephrite are very dense material. But that's another story for another time. That procedure takes many years to master. See website below for a more detailed explanation.
It's technically difficult to explain all the procedures one can do in a single post.
There is a website called:
www.jadeitejade.com
I am not sure if its still up and running today. The owner is a qualified GIA gemologist. He also is a experienced jade buyer. Both carved and rough (very important). He lists some very helpful hints for buyers etc. I know him. He is a great guy. His name is Arthur Lau. His website is substantial and one needs to be able to navigate it.
As I have stated many times before. Jadeite and nephrite are a very difficult area to master. It takes many years to master. It requires alot of hands-on experience. By that I mean actually touching both real and fake. Not looking at pictures!
Having a mentor who specializes in jades only would be a great benefit. One guy in the USA is Sam Bernstein who is located in San Francisco. His knowledge is phenomenal. But it's difficult to get close to people like him. Unless you spend a lot of time and money. Which is understandable etc.
Roger Kervene a well-known dealer in the UK published a book a few years back titled 'JADE'. It's a very good introduction to jades as it shows and explains the stimulants etc. Another one that is used by museums and high-end auction houses and dealers is by Professor Jessica Rawson. Titled 'Chinese jade from the Neolithic to the Qing. The former book by Roger is easily available. The one by Jessica is a bit more difficult and expensive.
I agree with you Errol this carving is a monstrosity of epic proportions. It must have been a special order for some client with too much money and no taste whatsoever. I can't imagine a dealer/carver thinking let's make a giant jade boat. Unless he was influenced by Jethro Gibbs from NCIS who was building a boat in his basement! It would be interesting to view the so-called valuation certificate.
Regards,
Mark
It was probably cheaper to have the Chinese workers flown in and have it made directly in the client’s living room than shipping it from China. I agree it’s kitsch though quite impressive. The most terrible thing about it would be to dust it regularly.
Birgit
Hi Errol -
Thanks so much for posting, it’s just what I was looking for!🤔
My 91 year old mum will love it!!!😳😂...
Stuart
Birgit: You would have to brush the dragons' teeth also. So, if you decide to buy it, it will become your life's work from now on.
Errol
I believe there was a post on this a few years ago. The conclusion was that it's not even a natural stone, it's a Chinese made stone like "quartz" or "silestone" made to imitate jade. There is a museum in ... Missouri I think... that has a lifesize chariot and a whole bunch of other ridiculous sized things. Very sad - the "museum" founder who was once a titan of industry wasted a fortune on this stuff. Knowledge is power.
It is what it is!
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