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- route was reopened. However, the preferred pure white jade, which had been pre�viously coming, was replaced by jade with brown flecks in it.16
The northern barbarian dynasties of Liao and Jin, which correspond to the Song period, were also interested in jade carving, as can be seen in recent excavation reports. Ornamental jades such as flowers, and floral rosettes seem to have been part of the repertory of these northern jade carvers. Astragals in jade have also been found in a number of Liao and Jin tombs.
In 1279 the Song were swept away by the Mongols led by Kublai Khan, who established the Yuan dynasty and ruled China with the help of Chinese officials from his capital at Beijing. During the Mongol era the area under one ruler was the most extensive in history.
Jade craftsmen of the Yuan period continued to work in the tradition of archa�ism and naturalism, which had been passed on to them by the Song. The archaising of jades appears to have gathered momentum and attained a more full develop�ment in the Yuan period.
During this dynasty floral rosettes became one of the most common forms of ornamental jade, and carvings of boys playing, riding buffalos and riding in clouds seem to have been popular sculptural themes.
The most famous jade object of historical importance dates to the Yuan dy�nasty. It is an enormous oblong cistern located in the Tuancheng (Round Fort) next to Beihai Park in Beijing, and was regarded as one of the wonders of the Mon�gol court because of its huge size. This vessel was carved from a single block of mottled dark green jade with a diameter varying from 103 to 130 cms. This jade bowl, which once belonged to Kublai Khan, has a design of dragons, a sea horse, a fish and other creatures emerging from waves.
By the mid-fourteenth century, the Yuan regime was declining in influence and power, the Mongol leadership was disunited, the country was suffering from floods and famines, and China was being overrun by Chinese rebel bands. In 1368 a re�bel named Zhu Yuanzhang toppled the Yuan dynasty and set up his own dynasty called Ming, which would last until 1644.
Because unsettled conditions along the northwestern border hampered the jade trade during the Ming, good quality jade material was not always available and tended to be a dull grey with brown and black striations. Also it seems that by late Ming times, much of the jade supply from the rivers in Khotan had become exhausted due to centuries of collecting.
As in the Song and Yuan dynasties, jade objects of the Ming continued to be produced mainly for the use and pleasure of the educated. However, prosperous merchants also became engaged in purchasing jade carvings. Both the scholar class and the merchants were very selective, demanding high quality in the jade material as well as skill and meticulous detail in the carving of the jade. As a result of this great appreciation and patronage, especially by rich merchants and men of letters in the Jiangnan or Yangzi River delta area, talented jade craftsmen set up workshops in the area, which surpassed the rest of China in economic prosperity and artistic development.
The jade carving craft was often hereditary and passed on from father to son or master to disciple, and soon cities like Suzhou and Yangzhou, became recognized as major centres for the production of jade carvings. Various schools with different styles and techniques developed, and jade carvers were soon regarded as artists as opposed to craftsmen. Some were even officially recorded in local gazetteers and were commemorated for their achievements in the poems and writings of the scholars.
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