How a Jade Cabbage Became the Star of Taiwan's National Palace Museum
Forbidden City Cabbage
The National Palace Museum in Taipei draws millions of visitors, but its most beloved artifact is a small jadeite cabbage carved with insects. Despite being one of many jade cabbages from the Qing dynasty, this piece has achieved global fame, symbolizing purity and abundance. Its popularity, however, is not matched by its historical significance, leaving curators with a double-edged sword.
Just like movies, a blockbuster may not necessarily be a masterpiece, and vice versa.
- guessmyname
> The cabbage is often referred to as one of the institution’s “three treasures,” along with two other popular artifacts — namely the Meat-Shaped Stone, a piece of jasper carved to resemble braised pork belly, and the Mao Kung Ting, a traditional cooking vessel featuring the longest known inscription of ancient characters on any item of Chinese bronzeware. The trio are often collectively described as “pickled cabbage pork hotpot” by tour guides and as a marketing gimmick.
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jadeite_Cabbage
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meat-Shaped_Stone
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mao_Gong_ding
• https://theme.npm.edu.tw/exh106/npm_anime/cabbage/en/index.h...
• https://theme.npm.edu.tw/exh106/NorthandSouth-4/en/index.htm...
• https://theme.npm.edu.tw/exh104/npmforfun/en/mediaworks/medi...
- mrlonglong
Older than Liz Truss chuckles
- Procrastes
It really is beautiful. It also makes me think of Sir Terry Pratchett, which is a good thing. If this were Ankh-Morpork, it would be a stunningly realistic carving of a cabbage—carved from another, larger cabbage.