Six Dynasties

After the fall of the Han Dynasty in A.D. 220, China had become divided into the three kingdoms of Wu, Wei, and Shu. In the year of 265 a powerful general overthrew the throne of Wei and declared himself King. In 280 he used the tools of war and alliances to unite the Three Kingdoms and establish the Jin Dynasty.

At the Northern frontiers where the Jin held no influence the powerful tribes of Xianbi and Xiongnu watched with the eyes of a vulture waiting for the opportune moment to strike and conquer the Chinese who were fighting amongst themselves for the throne of China. In A.D. 300 when the Jin was being torn apart by internal strife and power struggles the Xianbi and Xiongnu struck with deadly force. By the year 311 the Xiongnu captured Louyang and the Emperor Jin, massacring over 20,000 of the cities inhabitants. The brutal forces of the Xiongnu moved with the taste of blood and victory to pilfer, plunder and rape Chang’an from where the court of Jin fled to Nanjing.

During this period of Chinese history more than Seventeen smaller invading tribes fought for power over the crumbling Chinese Empire of the North. For over 150 years Northern China was in constant turmoil until a Turkish Nomadic tribe (Caucasian) conquered the Toba Wei and brought the North of China under their rule. Eventually the Chinese absorbed the Turkish through the Turks voluntary adoption of the Chinese language, customs and religion.

400 years elapsed between the fall of the Han Dynasty to the rise of the Tang Dynasty when China again had a great centralized empire. China was fractured and went through great social, political, and religious upheavals for those 400 years. Men with weapons of fear, hatred and war sought to rule China and no fewer than thirty dynasties and lesser kingdoms passed across the historic scenery of China before Sui reunited the empire in 581. Again the mandate of Heaven was enforced and was served only to be short lived until the establishment of the Tang.

At no other time in Chinese history is there such a diversification and proliferation of the lapidary arts of jade craftsmanship. With the explosive growth of small kingdoms and fiefdoms came the birth of Imperial Jade workshops that employed great numbers of highly skilled craftsman to produce for their Kings and rulers eternal Jade objects. This period of Chinese history is punctuated with a most fascinating form of spiritual mysticism that was called Taoism (pronounced with a D). Taoism gave the individual a reprieve from the outside chaos by finding harmony within. The arts of Calligraphy, pure talk (qingtan), poetry, music and the crafts flourished. The disciplines of strict Confucian thought and dogma that had created a rigid and often uninspired culture were now broken and the imagination and intellect of the Chinese gave flight to freedom to explore and express.

Another great spiritual and religious movement that swept China during the Six Dynasties was Buddhism that promised individual enlightenment. When the Toba Turks conquered the Wei and Northern China they embraced Buddhism and built shrines to worship the way of Buddha. By the arrival of the Tang Dynasty Buddhism had become the main stream religion of China and often Chinese Buddhism is equated to a tree with one trunk and many branches to express the wide diversities of different types of Buddhist sects and beliefs. Many of the beautiful Jade treasures created during this time of Chinese history are icons of Buddha. Most interesting is the fact that some of the greatest Buddhist Shrines and Temples were created during this time of Chinese History.

Many of these most amazing expressions of Taoism and Buddhist art treasures have survived today in the museum and private collections of China, Taiwan, USA and Europe. Perhaps one of the most interesting facts is the lack of understanding for the power and diversity of Jade gemstone artifacts that were fashioned during this most turbulent yet creative period of Chinese history. One very fascinating aspect of jade wares of this era is the influence of the past expressed in their present. The arts carry the motifs of the Neolithic, Shang, Zhou and Han. These great works of gemstone lapidary art seem to seek the reassurance and security of the past and embrace a balance between the past and present. Pottery and ceramics flourished and achieved new creative and artistic expressions. Perhaps one of the most striking artistic achievement of these times were the creation of large Stone Buddha Statues and shrines.

TIn dating and ascertaining the origins of Six Dynasties gemstone artifacts it is impossible to ascertain the particular kingdom or ruler that influenced its creation. What is necessary to understand is the influence and the appeal of the glorious past and the remarkable exercise in artistic freedoms that gave rise to Jade treasures that the world had never seen. Many of these gemstone wonders were worn as ornamentation and for good luck while others were made for the rulers and ruling family’s funerary purposes.

If one could sum up in a few words the Six Dynasties period of Chinese history, one would say “Artistic Freedom”. A world of social turmoil and war that gives birth to an age of aestheticians, calligraphers, Imperial Jade workshops, jade art objects for the masses, and a deeper insight into the human existence are all hallmarks of this era of Chinese history.

Authentic Six Dynasties Jades artifacts are indeed a joy to behold. I have studied and specialized in Six Dynasties Jades for over 30-years and find that each is treasure to cherish. I occasional offer Six Dynasties Jade specimens from my 30-year collection so please check my Ebay auctions while I have them available. -ian (Fung Gen Qua)

SIX DYNASTIES 265 -589 A.D.

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