Scholar Seal Mountain Scene

Sculpture

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The Curio Cabinet Collection

Name/Title

Scholar Seal Mountain Scene

Entry/Object ID

CE2903

Description

A traditional Chinese scholar's seal, featuring a classic combination of poetic inscription on the back and a formal seal script face on the base. It utilizes intaglio (baiwen 白文 / white characters), meaning the characters themselves are carved into the surface, leaving a white-on-red imprint when stamped with vermilion ink. The poetic text inscribed on the back side complements the landscape scene depicted on the front. Line 1: 「山徑松風」 (Shān jìng sōng fēng)Characters: 山 (Mountain) • 徑 (Path/Trail) • 松 (Pine tree) • 風 (Wind/Breeze).Meaning: “The mountain path and the wind whispering through the pines.” This directly matches the low-relief carving on the front, which highlights prominent pine trees and winding paths up the hillside. Line 2: 「白雲深處」 (Bái yún shēn chù) Characters: 白 (White) • 雲 (Clouds) • 深 (Deep) • 處 (Place).Meaning: “Deep amidst the white clouds.” This is a classical Chinese poetic trope (famously used by the Tang dynasty poet Du Mu) that describes an isolated, elevated sanctuary far from civil society. Line 3: 「茅舍晴翠」 (Máo shè qíng cuì)Characters: 茅 (Thatch/Straw) • 舍 (Cottage/Lodge) • 晴 (Clear sky/Sunny) • 翠 (Emerald green/Lush foliage).Meaning: “A thatched cottage surrounded by clear, bright greenery.” This refers to the small shelter or pavilion visible near the mountain crest on the object's front side. Line 4: 「刻於秋月」 (Kè yú qiū yuè) Characters: 刻 (Carved/Engraved) • 於 (At/During) • 秋 (Autumn) • 月 (Month/Moon) It translates to: "Along the mountain path, a breeze rustles the pines; Deep amidst the white clouds sits a secluded home, A thatched cottage bathed in bright, lush greenery. Engraved during a beautiful autumn month."

Type of Sculpture

Free Standing

Artwork Details

Medium

Appears to be Soapstone or Shoushan stone

Subject

Mountain village

Category

Chinese carved stone seal

Made/Created

Artist

Li De

Ethnography

Cultural Region

Continent

Asia

Inscription/Signature/Marks

The base is carved in an stylized, geometric variant of Nine-Fold Seal Script (Jiudiezhuan 九疊篆) or archaic bronze script. It is designed to be read in a specific matrix—typically starting from the top right, moving down the column, and then moving to the left column. The script uses a highly stylized, symmetrical form of archaic script designed specifically to fit the square layout of the base. To correctly read the name, the image must be viewed as a mirror image (since seals are carved in reverse to stamp correctly forward).Once flipped, the layout is read column by column, from right to left: Right Column: 「李」 (Lǐ) — This is the surname at the top right, a very common and historic Chinese family name. Left Column: 「之印」 (Zhī Yìn) — The bottom-left character is explicitly the classical seal character for 印 (Yìn / Seal), preceded by 之 (Zhī). Together, this phrases the block as "The Seal of Li De".The middle characters utilize an abstracted, elongated motif common in specialized custom scholar stamps to prevent forgery.

Dimensions

Height

2-3/4 in

Width

1-1/2 in

Depth

3/4 in

Weight

100 g

Condition

Overall Condition

Very Good

Acquisition

Acquisition Method

Purchase