Collection of Gods

Chapter 289 The Dust Settles
Late at night, the presidential suite where Tang Yuan was located was still brightly lit.

Outside the door are elite bodyguards in suits and leather shoes.

Inside the door were heavily armed Yanjing special police officers.

In the study, the appraisal work is still going on.

As Yang Jianmin and Huang Houshun identified authentic jade seals one after another, news about the appearance of 24 seals from the Ming Dynasty finally spread.

Although the time is getting later and later, there are more and more people here in Tang Yuan. First, the curator of the Palace Museum came first after hearing the news, followed by the president of Yanjing Poly Auction House and Sotheby's Auction House. The Yanjing branch manager of the company, the Yanjing branch manager of Christie’s auction house, and others came one after another.

In the end, even many officials were alarmed.

Deputy Director of Yanjing GA Bureau, Deputy Q Director of Chaoyang District, Deputy Director B of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism...

The study room, which originally seemed quite large, now looks a bit crowded.

"Based on the available data, this imperial edict of the Ming Dynasty is also authentic."

Yang Jianmin took the lead in appraising the last two jade seals in his hand. He first carefully put down the jade seal in his hand, then took off his reading glasses, exhaled for a long time, and his whole body relaxed visibly.

The hours of highly concentrated appraisal work is indeed a bit hard for an old man over sixty years old.

"Teacher Yang, thank you for your hard work."

"Drink some tea and eat some cakes."

Tang Yuan took the initiative to move a chair for Yang Jianmin and said to him warmly.

"Thank you, Mr. Tang. It's okay."

"I'm just a little exhausted. I just need to sit down and rest for a while."

Yang Jianmin smiled and waved his hand. Although the tiredness on his face was obvious, his eyes were extremely bright. Obviously, for him, he was very happy to be lucky enough to identify the authenticity of the 24 seals of the Ming Dynasty.

"Teacher Yang, can you tell us how these jade seals were identified, so that I won't have to talk to others in the future and I don't know where to start."

When Tang Yuan and Yang Jianmin were free, he found the right opportunity to ask Yang Jianmin the questions that had been in his mind for a long time.

After all, these Ming Dynasty jade seals are destined to become Tang Yuan's private collection. It is inevitable that friends will want to appreciate them in the future. If Tang Yuan doesn't know everything about it, it will be a bit embarrassing, so it is still useful to reserve some professional knowledge in advance. necessary.

As Tang Yuan finished speaking, other people in the study also looked at them curiously. For laymen like them, they knew that these jade seals were national treasure-level cultural relics, but they didn't know how to distinguish and appreciate them. That feeling was really not that wonderful. Now that they had the opportunity to find out, they naturally wanted to hear how Yang Jianmin and the two identified themselves.

Facing the attention of everyone, Yang Jianmin smiled, then stood up again, and picked up the jade seal that he had just put down, the imperial seal of the Ming Dynasty. "Since you want to know more about it, let me tell you briefly. It's not that I keep it secret, but this kind of thing cannot be explained clearly in a few words. But after listening to what I say, if you can keep it in mind, in the future If you encounter similar things again and want to get a rough idea, it’s still okay.”

When Yang Jianmin said this, he gently patted the back button of the jade seal in his hand and said: "Jade seals and porcelain actually have something in common, such as the back button. The back button has various images, but the royal jade seal, especially It is the jade seal used by the emperor, and there are usually two types, dragon and tiger."

"However, it should be noted here that the jade seals of the Tang and Han Dynasties were mainly dragons. Before and after the Tang and Han Dynasties, the jade seals were still mainly Chihu. Generally, emperors and queens used Chihu buttons, and princes and kings used camel buttons. . Marquises, prime ministers, Taiwei, etc. use turtle buttons, and nose buttons are used for thousands of stones, six hundred stones, four hundred stones, and more than two hundred stones. Private seals are arbitrary, as long as they are not overstepped, many graphics are acceptable, and not just animals. , pavilions, bridges, and tiles are all fine.”

"But I can only make a rough distinction in terms of image. The other is the quality of jade. I won't be able to tell this for a while. If I really encounter it, I will find an expert who understands jade. But even an expert can only distinguish jade at best. Is it ancient jade or new jade?”

Zhao Yu, who was standing nearby, heard this and asked curiously: "Teacher Yang, according to what you said, does it mean that as long as it is confirmed to be ancient jade, it can prove that this jade seal is authentic?"

"No." Yang Jianmin shook his head: "Porcelain can be painted, and so can jade seals. Ancient seals and jade are often unearthed in Guanzhong, Luoxia, and Jinan. Many people buy ancient jade and make it fake. The jade itself is old Yes, the forged seal is also old, how can you tell the difference? Even someone who has been playing with seals all year round can't tell the difference."

"If you want to determine authenticity, there are only two truly effective identification methods. One is the method I just mentioned, using seals for comparison, but the premise is that there must be seals left in history, such as these Ming Dynasty jade seals. Better yet, although there are not many imperial edict documents left over from the Ming Dynasty, there are still quite a few, which can be seen through direct comparison. However, if some jade seals are very old and there are no imperial edict documents left over for comparison, it will be difficult. "

"Another way is to look at the carvings of the jade seal, from the carving of the back buttons, to the lines on the four sides, to the seals. In ancient times, it was not ordinary people who could make jade seals, and ordinary people were not qualified to touch them. The words on the real jade seal require You can't scratch your hands, but you must also ensure the clarity of the decorative lines. Don't look at what I say is simple, but if you want to do it, a master sculptor who has been immersed in it for decades can't do it. This level of delicacy cannot be achieved by imitations. heights reached."

As he spoke, Yang Jianmin turned over the jade seal in his hand, pointed at the seal below and said: "The intersection angles between the seal, the relief and the plane of the base have subtle chamfers, which cannot be seen without looking carefully. This method is In order to prevent the ink mud from remaining on the object, once it remains, it will affect the line standard of the seal. Fake products cannot achieve this level. It may not be visible just by looking at it, but as long as the red mud is printed on the paper, it will You can tell the difference by stamping it.”

"Moreover, the royal craftsmen are very high-level in both painting and calligraphy. Some of them were even famous calligraphers at that time. Only in this way can we achieve the perfect combination of arts and crafts, and those who make fakes are pure workers, even a little bit of calligraphy." There is no basis for it, and the carved characters are extremely stiff."

"If a jade seal can be exchanged for authenticity in all the aspects I mentioned, then even if the jade seal is fake, it already has a certain collection value."

After listening to Yang Jianmin's introduction, everyone looked a little surprised. No one thought that such a small jade seal contained so much knowledge and knowledge.

Just as everyone was recalling the knowledge introduced by Yang Jianmin, Huang Houshun, who had just been focusing on the appraisal, slowly put down the jade seal in his hand, and this jade seal was the last one among the 24 jade seals that had not yet been appraised. Imperial jade seal.

"Now it is certain that the jade seal in Yunnan Province, which is the treasure of the Yongli Emperor of the Southern Ming Dynasty, is fake, because the real jade seal of the Yongli Emperor of the Southern Ming Dynasty is the one I just identified, and its seal It is completely consistent with the imperial edict documents we have, and there is no error at all."

Huang Houshun glanced across the audience and announced to Tang Yuan and others with a very serious and rigorous attitude.

As Huang Houshun's voice fell, even though everyone had been prepared in advance, when they heard Huang Houshun's announcement, their hearts inevitably beat half a beat slower.

We must know that during the entire 276-year history of the Ming Dynasty, from its founding to its demise, only these 24 jade seals were cast. They witnessed the rise and fall of the entire Ming Dynasty, and their historical and cultural significance are self-evident.

Now, they are lying quietly on that table.

Unknowingly, that table seemed to have a magical power, attracting the attention of everyone in the study, and making the entire study become quiet...

(End of this chapter)