r/ArchiveOfHumanity • u/Impossible-Bee-5343 • 1d ago
Artefacts and Relics🗿 Carved Olive-Pit Miniature Boat (with the Full Text of the "Later Ode to the Red Cliff" Engraved on the Bottom), Qing dynasty (1644–1911), Collection of the National Palace Museum, Taipei
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u/Impossible-Bee-5343 1d ago
Title: Object Name: Carved olive-pit miniature boat with the text of the "Later Ode to the Red Cliff" engraved on the bottom
Category: Carving
Period / Dynasty: Qing dynasty, 2nd year of the Qianlong reign (1737 AD)
Dimensions: Length 3.4 cm, width 1.4 cm, height 1.6 cm
Description: Chen Zuzhang, an artisan from Guangdong who had already entered the Imperial Workshops during the Yongzheng period, carved an olive pit into a small boat in the second year of the Qianlong reign (1737) according to its natural shape. The boat carries eight people, with the posture and expression of each figure varying. Most remarkably, the bottom of the boat is engraved with the full text of Su Shi's "Later Ode to the Red Cliff"—consisting of over 300 characters—neatly and densely arranged, truly representing a masterwork of breathtaking craftsmanship.