A white Furong carving

Furong stone, a type of seal stone from shoushan, is famous for its spectrum of colours from white, yellow to red. The material is well suited for carving into seals. As Chinese people like seals art, they also like this stone. In everyday life, seals have become an integral part of a person's identity. He needs to stamp his personal seal onto an agreement to make it a legal document. Artists have to put their best seals onto their paintings to protect their right. Teapot makers also put their seals at the bottom of the pots to claim ownership of their works.

There are many different types of seal stones. Top of the range will be Tianhuang stone follows by Chicken blood stone, then comes the Furong stone. In the terminology of the Qing emperor, Tianhuang is the king, Chicken blood is the queen and Furong is the concubine of all seal stones. You can see the importance of this stone in early days.

Furong stones have become expensive these days as the resources of this material have greatly depleted due to hundreds of years of continuous mining.

I have here a stone carving of the goddess of mercy created from a white Furong stone. The carving is well executed as the goddess sits elegantly in a very composed manner. The hands and legs are superbly crafted, elegant and gracious. The right hand is holding a Ruyi while the left palm is raised showing the delicate fingers. The legs are well placed in a balanced posture that shows the goddess's at ease with the surroundings. This requires extreme patience so as not to damage the little features such as the fingers. This must be the work of a master who is well trained in the art of carving. Looking at the goddess gives people a sense of respect and admiration. Salute to the person who created this piece of art that enables me to have endless fun and satisfaction.