Asian Art in London
4th-14th November 2010
Introduction
The study of art history necessarily emphasises the material at the expense of the immaterial. In China, this has resulted in the neglect of many significant aspects of her ancient culture, such as music and dance. Scent, the subject of this autumn’s exhibition, is also an area that has hardly been studied, in spite of its numerous references in historical texts and literature.
The character xiang (≠ª) has its prototype in oracle bone inscriptions more than 4000 years old and denotes a pleasant smell, referring specifically to the sweet smell of rice stalks with its associations of a bountiful harvest. Another character found on oracle bones, the prototype to the modern character zi (µµ), is drawn as a man holding burning wood stalks. This is defined in the Shuowen jiezi as ‘burning wood in sacrifice to heaven’. As far back as the Neolithic times, the smell from dried mugwort (Artemisia vulgaris), which the ancients used to start fire, was supposed to have medicinal as well as purifying properties. Thus from the earliest records it can be seen that scent was used in China for worship, medicine and pleasure.
Some of the earliest incense excavated in China is a resin-based fragrant substance in a red-lacquer box found in the tomb of the King of Nanyue (approx. 130 BCE?). It was also during the Han dynasty that works of art associated with scent begin to be made. Many of the small but valuable lacquer, bronze or jade boxes were probably used to contain the precious perfume (see cat. no. 1). However, in this period, perhaps the most significant development in our story was the appearance of the incense burner.
These burners were often designed as mountain peaks surmounted by elongated fabulous beasts, further enhanced with abstracted swirling clouds. This design was known as the boshanlu or ‘universal mountain brazier’ and was based on Daoist ideas of a many peaked, island paradise. With the incense smoke emanating from between the peaks, it was possible for the viewer to imagine himself floating above these mysterious islands, which were said to dissolve into mist as mortals approached.
The use of a Daoist design in the burner was probably not accidental. The early Han period saw a proliferation of studies on medicinal herbs and substances as Han Wudi was fascinated with Daoist elixirs. With expanded foreign contacts and increasing trade, many new fragrant spices were introduced to the Chinese.
As a design, the boshanlu represented a break from any previous works in bronze. The radical novelty of the design of the boshanlu also had to do with Han Wudi’s pioneering spirit, which is evident on a magnificent gilt-bronze example excavated in a Han tomb in Shaanxi, dated to the fouth year of Jianyuan (135 BCE), the fifth year after Han Wudi ascended the throne. It bears the inscription Neizhe Weiyang Shangwo, ‘in the care of the Bed Keeper of Weiyang Palace’. The Weiyang Palace was Wudi’s study, so this burner was clearly intended for his personal use. Raised on an imitation-bamboo stem and decorated with four strident dragons around undulating mountain peaks, this censer exemplifies the innovative style favoured by this legendary ruler.
In spite of its Daoist origins, by the 5th century the boshanlu became closely associated with Buddhism, a foreign religion imported from India through Central Asia. It appears carved as a votive offering at the base of Buddhist steles dating to the Northern Wei period. Curiously, they are absent from otherwise similar sculptures of the preceding 16 kingdoms period, suggesting that the use of incense in Buddhist ceremonies was first promulgated in China by the Central Asian Toba Wei aristocracy.
The increasing popularity of Buddhism during the following Sui and Tang dynasties saw the increase in the use of incense, evident from examples on Buddhist paintings and sculpture of the period. Ever expanding trade and prosperity created fertile ground for new styles and innovations, the very rare hand-held incense burner (cat. no. 3) being one such example, combining a confident exuberance with an unexpected practicality.
Not surprisingly, the decorative motifs used on the censers moved away from Daoist imagery and towards a new Buddhist vocabulary. The conical mountain transformed into a lotus bud, while the mythical animals of Daoism were replaced by Buddhist lions. The latter, a guardian of Buddhist teaching, appears on the hand-held censer as well as a cover for the later white-glazed censer from the Five Dynasties (cat. no. 6). Here, the design is especially artful, the lion animated by the breath-like smoke emanating from its mouth.
The cities of the Tang dynasty also saw an expansion of the types of fragrant substances used in China. Plant extracts like camphor and turmeric were in great demand, and were said to have been used in the Tang court to scent the palaces of the concubines before the emperor spent the night there. Exotic fragrant flowers such as patchouli and jasmine were also imported for their scent. Jia Sixie, writing in the 6th century, noted patchouli as an ingredient for making 'face oil', a type of facial moisturiser a practice reflected in the making of ceramic boxes designed especially to contain these precious oils (cat. no. 4).
Since both foreign spice traders and Buddhist missionaries came from the west, it is little wonder that Luohans are often depicted with incense. In the famous Tang painting of luohans by Lu lengjia, the gift of the Central Asian worshipper has often been interpreted to be a rock. However, it is equally likely to be a piece of scented wood. Similarly, in the portrait of a young luohan (cat. no. 5) in the current exhibition, the gnarled tree bark standing in the drum shaped censer probably represents a treasured piece of chenxiangmu (agar).
However, it was during the Song dynasty that the use of incense reached a zenith. In the Song Shi (History of Song Dynasty), it is recorded that:
In the Song economy, apart from tea, salt and alum, xiang is the most profitable, therefore its market is controlled by the government.
The tax revenue from the trade of xiang liao increased almost four-fold from the beginning of Northern Song to the beginning of Southern Song, a testament to the demand and popularity of this commodity. With such large volumes, the court had to set up an official bureau, Shibosi, to regulate the trade, a precursor to the modern day customs office. Thus, it would not be an exaggeration to say that the import of xiang liao directly resulted in the establishment of the customs office in China.
Although incense was still associated with Buddhism, as seen in the wan-symbol decorated stone censer dating from the Northern Song period (cat. no. 7), it also would have been used in the type of ancestor worship rituals seen in Li Gonglin’s depiction of sacrifice to heaven. Moreover the rise of Neo-Confucianism, with its emphasis on self-cultivation, popularised scholarly activities such as music and calligraphy, the experience of which was enhanced by the use of incense.
For example, the poet Lu You (1125-1210), describes his intimate relationship with incense in the following lines:
The window is bright, the desk is clear;
Leisurely I trace a Tang calligraphy
with incense deep in the precious burner.
Similarly, in the famous painting “listening to the zither” by the Emperor Song Huizong, incense is used to accompany the playing of the qin.
Another poet, Chen Yiyu (1090-1138), delighted in his solitude with no one but the company of burning incense:
Unversed in officialdom others tease me,
Socialising rarely, I am able to hide myself.
When clouds shift I hold on to a walking stick,
Sitting in leisure, only with the incense burning.
Another aspect of Northern Song Neo-Confucianism was the use of antiquity as the standard in identifying and defining things Chinese. The rediscovery and collection of archaic ritual bronzes such as the ding, li and gui also led to their creative reuse, where a li is used as a plant container. Before long these bronze forms would become inextricably linked to incense as burners. The publication of illustrated catalogues of ancient bronzes in Imperial and private collections such as Kaogu Tu and Xuanhe Bogu Tu, provided the pattern books for contemporary craftsmen, and copies of these forms in ceramics, jade and bronze soon appeared. The very rare large bronze tripod censer in the current exhibition (cat. no. 8), reflects this newfound taste, and is a very close copy of an example in the Kaogu Tu. Although a censer of such large size would undoubtedly have been used in a large temple or important ancestral shrine, it must have been primarily admired for its air of antiquity, regardless of the context and ceremonies in which it was used, and without overt Buddhist or Daoist motifs.
Thus, scent and the life of the literati became inextricably intertwined from the Song dynasty onwards. It is therefore not surprising that the next golden age of incense was the 17th century, another period in which there was a revival of neo-Confucianism and the rise of the scholar-official.
In the interim, incense had continued to occupy an important place in worship. Important blue and white ceramic censers such as cat. no. 11, were created to be accompanied by matching pairs of candlesticks and vases, to make a set known as wu gong or the five offerings. These would grace the large altar tables that had become fashionable in the 15th century onwards, and which are copied in stone in royal tombs of the period.
However, it was during the 17th century, that we once again see an intimate connection between the use of incense and the scholar. In the biji and guides of taste of the day such as Wen Zhenghen’s Zhangwu zhi (Notes on Superfluous Things), there are extensive references to incense and the types of censers that should be used. For example, he writes:
Ding vessels from the Three Dynasties, Qin and Han, as well as those from the guan, ge, Ding and Longquan kilns are all for appreciation, not to be used. Only use Xuande bronze censers - the larger ones are particularly suitable.
Like the furniture favoured by the literati of the period, there is a marked fashion for austerity and archaism. The illustrated catalogue Xuande Dingyi tulu (Illustrated Catalogue of Xuande Bronze Vessels) published in the late Ming shows the tastes in bronze censers in the 17th century, (rather those of the Xuande reign that it purports to date from). Quite unlike the Song and Yuan bronze examples, where the surfaces are heavily decorated in imitation of archaic pieces, the examples illustrated in this catalogue are usually undecorated, but of exquisite outline. These censers, made with high quality bronze alloy with high zinc content and supposedly copying Song ceramics, form a unique group amongst the cognoscenti of Chinese art as the simply termed Xuanlu – Xuande censers (cat. nos. 14, 15), even though few, if any, of these can be categorically dated to the Xuande period.
At the same period, there were also censers that were decorated with narrative scenes, such as the Chongzhen period blue and white porcelain censer in the current exhibition (cat. no. 20) which illustrates the Peach Blossom Spring, a text written by Tao Yuanming (365-427) in 421 AD as an allegory of a scholar-official’s longing for utopia. This would have been especially meaningful given the political chaos of the day. Interestingly, many of these designs are modelled on designs taken from woodblock illustrations, reflecting the increasing availability of printed books.
The popularity of scent at this time is reflected in the proliferation of the forms in which incense was made as well as the accessories used in its burning. One new innovation was the incense stick and the accompanying bamboo parfumier (cat. no. 12). The latter formed from a section of bamboo, carved and reticulated so that smoke from the burning stick would emanate from within. Other novelties included the use of incense tools, such as shovels and chopsticks-like tongs, to flatten ash and to arrange pieces of incense or wood. These would be held in a small spill vase, which together with the incense box and censer, made up lu, he, ping, a tri-partite set that was essential for every scholar’s desk.
With the return to a strong centralised government and the rise of imperial patronage at the beginning of the Qing dynasty, the intimate feeling of censers of the 17th century gave way to a much grander, more extravagant style. During the Qianlong and Jiaqing period, with the revival of philology and interests in archaeology, censers made in imitation of archaic bronzes again became popular. In the tradition of Xuanhe Bogu tu, the Qianlong Emperor compiled his own catalogue of archaic bronzes, the Xiqing Gujian. Remarkably accurate Bronzes facsimiles of archaic prototypes were produced, but the Qing taste for rich finishes led to fanciful additions such as the gold-splashed highlights seen on the gui formed censer (cat. no. 22).
Other uses of scent other than incense are also known from this period. Fragrant woods such as sandalwood and aloeswood are used to make accessories for the study and home such as pillows (cat. no. 25) and brush-pots. Crushed and combined with lacquer, they were formed into hairpins and pendants that perfumed the wearer. The strange shapes of the scented wood was admired in themselves and used as decoration in the studio, in a manner similar to scholar’s rocks (cat. no. 23). Scent filled pomanders perfumed wedding beds while fragrant lingzhi was grown as penzai, in order to scent and fumigate rooms.
Today, with the revival of scholarly taste among collectors of Chinese art, incense once again enlivens the gatherings of friends, and accompanies philosophical reflection. Although it is chenxiang that forms the basis of most modern Chinese incense, increasing knowledge about the fragrances of the past has led to experimentation among incense makers. As in the past, new forms of censers are introduced, including burners making use of electricity.
Thus, it can be seen that this aspect of Chinese culture is still evolving, continuing a tradition that began over 4000 years ago.
