Pork stones or meat-like stone is mainly found in Lushan County, Henan Province. It is a natural stone that has been jadeized for hundreds of millions of years. Because of its rarity, quality, shape, pattern, skin, interesting and unusual colorful, and close appearance to real meat, it is recognized as a first-class collectable stone art by domestic and foreign experts and art collectors.
Years ago, when I took a trip to Henan Province and the Lushan region of China, I saw some of these stones that looked very much like pork, so I bought a few for souvenirs and home decorations.
In ancient times, the houses where the wealthy lived were huge. People often placed beautifully shaped natural stones in their courtyards and gardens as if they were sculptures. In the absence of stones, the houses would feel too empty. Therefore, people would use stones with interesting shapes to decorate their gardens.
The culture of stone appreciation and collection gradually developed. In ancient times, people generally liked things with auspicious meanings. For example, the fish eaten during the Chinese New Year represents: “There’s more than enough to eat and save every year.” Therefore, displaying a stone that looks like 3-layer fat-and-lean meat in their homes, signifying that their family would have no meat shortage to last a lifetime.
At first glance, this meat-shaped stone looks like a delicious piece of well-cooked “Dongpo Pork.” It came from Inner Mongolia, and was presented to the Inner Palace during the reign of Emperor Kangxi in the Qing Dynasty. It is one of the three treasures of the Palace Museum in Taipei.
Tan It Koon
Before retirement, Dr Tan It Koon was, among many appointments, Head of Clinical Biochemistry at SGH’s Dept of Pathology. He was the Deputy Chairman of the National Theatre Trust and Chairman for Grants and Scholarships of the Spore Cultural Foundation. He received the National Day Awards, PBM, and PPA, for his contribution to cultural and community development and excellence in Public Administration.
