Meat-shaped Stone 肉形石

Meat-shaped Stone 肉形石

Meat-like object, Stone, Jade

This mouth-watering chunk of stewed pork belly with a gratuitous layer of fat and glistening sheen is actually a piece of rock—jasper to be exact—that was cleverly carved and dyed to resemble a succulent piece of meat by an anonymous Qing dynasty artist in the 19th-century.

Qing Dynasty (1644-1911 AD)

Meat Stone

Rough surface, Layered colours

Craft

The stone was carved during the Qing dynasty from banded jasper. The layers of the stone accumulated naturally over the years, with various shades of hues. The craftsman who carved the stone stained the skin, which resulted in a realistic looking piece of stone with multiple layers appearing like layers of fat and meat.

What makes this piece of art so special is that the rock naturally looks like a piece of pork belly, with its layers formed by the accumulation of different impurities. The craftsman who made this took the rich natural resources of the stone and carved it with great precision, even rendering the pores, the wrinkles and dimples on the skin.

Stone

It is part of the collection of the National Palace Museum in Taipei, Taiwan. Although of only moderate importance from the point of view of art history, it is a great popular favourite with visitors and has become famous.