Gongshi Explained

Gongshi, also known as scholar's rocks or viewing stones, are naturally occurring or shaped rocks which are traditionally appreciated by Chinese scholars.^[1] The term is related to the Korean suseok (Korean: 수석) and the Japanese suiseki (Japanese: 水石).

Scholars' rocks can be any color, and contrasting colors are not uncommon. The size of the stone can also be quite varied: scholars' rocks can weigh hundreds of pounds or less than one pound.^[2] The term also identifies stones which are placed in traditional Chinese gardens.

History

In the Tang dynasty, a set of four important qualities for the rocks were recognized. They are: thinness (瘦 shòu), openness (透 tòu), perforations (漏 lòu), and wrinkling (皺 zhòu).^[1]

Gongshi influenced the development of Korean suseok and Japanese suiseki.^[3]

Sources

There are three main Chinese sources for these stones.

• Lingbi stone (Lingbishi) (Chinese: 灵璧石) from Lingbi, Anhui province, limestone^{[4] [5]}
• Taihu stone (Taihushi) (Chinese: 太湖石) from Lake Tai, Jiangsu province, limestone^[4]
• Yingde stone (Yingshi or Yingdeshi) (Chinese: 英石 or 英德石) from Yingde, Guangdong province, limestone^[6]

The geological conditions needed for the formation of stones are also present at some other sites.^{[7] [8]}

Formation

Scholar's stones are generally karstic limestone. Limestone is water-soluble under some conditions. Dissolution pitting dissolves hollows in the limestone. On a larger scale, this causes speleogenesis (when caves dissolve in limestone bedrock). On a still larger scale, the dissolved caves collapse, gradually creating karst topography, such as the famous landscapes of Guilin in the South China Karst.

As rocks are broadly fractal (geology journals require a scale to be included in images of rocks), the small rocks can resemble the larger landscape.

Aesthetics

The aesthetics of a scholar's rock is based on subtleties of color, shape, markings, surface, and sound. Prized qualities include:

• awkward or overhanging asymmetry^[9]
• resonance or ringing when struck^[9]
• representation or resemblance to mountainous landscapes, particularly these believed to be inhabited by immortal beings^[1] or figures ^{[9] [10]}
• texture^[9]
• moistness or glossy surface^[9]

The stone may be displayed on a rosewood pedestal that has been carved specifically for the stone. The stones are a traditional subject of Chinese paintings.^[11]

Further reading

• Little, Stephen, Spirit stones of China, the Ian and Susan Wilson collection of Chinese stones, paintings, and related scholars' objects, Chicago, Art Institute of Chicago, 1999,

External links

• Visuals and examples of scholar rocks
• Galleries of scholar rocks
• Books on scholars' rocks
• Chinese scholar's rock history, an introductory historical background
• Classification of Chinese scholar's rocks
• Scholar's rock at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Notes and References

1. Metropolitan Museum of Art, "The World of Scholars' Rocks Gardens, Studios, and Paintings"; retrieved 2012-12-20.
2. Harvard Shanghai Center, "Scholar Stone"; retrieved 2012-12-20.
3. Brokaw, Charles. (2011). The Temple Mount Code, p. 73.
4. Cousins, Craig. (2006). Bonsai Master Class, p. 246.
5. http://www.lingbistone.org/ Lingbi Stone and Asian Art Collection
6. Cousins, p. 247.
7. Numerical Ages of Holocene Tributary Debris Fans Inferred from Dissolution Pitting on Carbonate Boulders in the Grand Canyon of Arizona. 10.1006/qres.1998.1987. 1998. Hereford. Richard. Thompson. Kathryn S.. Burke. Kelly J.. Quaternary Research. 50. 2. 139–147. 1998QuRes..50..139H.
8. Web site: Underwater dissolutional pitting on dolostones, Lake Huron-Georgian bay, Ontario. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20170910040756/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/261680877_Underwater_dissolutional_pitting_on_dolostones_Lake_Huron-Georgian_bay_Ontario. 2017-09-10.
9. Mendelson, John. "Chinese scholars' rocks simultaneously original and simulacrum" at ArtNet.com, 1996; retrieved 2012-12-20>
10. News: Smith . Roberta . ART REVIEW;Old Chinese Rocks: Rorschach Blots In 3 Dimensions . New York Times . 2014-07-10 . 1996-05-31 .
11. Harvard Museums, "Scholar's rock", 1993 painting; Linrothe, Robert N. (2004). Paradise and Plumage: Chinese Connections in Tibetan Arhat Painting, p. 24; retrieved 2012-12-20.