Jianbao life

Chapter 500 Bartering (continued)

Then, Chu Chen pointed out several places on the two jade walls that were different from the real ones, and then asked Wan Nianqing to observe carefully with a magnifying glass. Sure enough, the lines on these places under the magnifying glass were indeed the same as those on the jade wares carved in the Han Dynasty. The texture is different.

This discovery shocked Wan Nianqing, but also felt embarrassing. After all, these three jade walls were exchanged by him and Chu Chen, but now they are found to be fakes. In this situation, it is as if he was caught by the person who did something bad. The current situation is so-so, which makes him feel ashamed.

"This, Xiao Chu, I'm really sorry!"

"Wan Lao, I believe you didn't do it on purpose!" Chu Chen waved his hand and said, "The producers of this pair of jade walls must have spent a lot of effort, and the tools used should be almost all handmade, such as abrasives. , if I'm not mistaken, loose sand should be used."

Seeing Chu Chen's statement, Wan Nianqing couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. He was really worried that Chu Chen might misunderstand him. If he didn't exchange utensils with him because of this, he would really want to cry.

However, he was also curious about what Chu Chen said, and asked, "Xiao Chu, how do you know that the abrasive is loose sand?"

Chu Chen explained with a smile: "I have seen relevant photos at my master's place, and the wear marks on these two jade walls are basically the same as those in the photos."

"Why haven't I seen it, grandpa is really biased!" Liu Sizhe muttered.

Chu Chen said angrily: "You are totally lazy. Those photos are in the leftmost bookcase of the master's study. If you don't look through them yourself, why don't you let the master deliver them to you before you can see them!"

Liu Sizhe rubbed his nose and smiled coquettishly. He usually respects and fears his grandpa. In normal times, it's too late to hide. How could he frequent grandpa's study like Chu Chen?

Seeing Liu Sizhe's embarrassing appearance, Wang Xiaoyue asked:
"Brother Chu, how can this loose sand be made to be similar to the real thing?"

"Besides the labor-intensive method, the method is quite simple, but one thing to note is that the size of the loose sand particles is not uniform. When grinding, you can only use the water-soaked loose sand method."

Chu Chen explained: "After the desired effect is achieved, then use the grinding stone to grind, but the grinding stone must be made of steel or wood, and never use glued grinding stones, so that the surface will remain abrasive. The traces are almost the same as those of the ancient jade. It’s just that the fake ones are fake after all, and the traces are somewhat different from the real ones, but they are relatively subtle, and it’s hard to find if you don’t observe carefully.”

Wan Nianqing secretly sighed, after all, he was still inexperienced, but although Chu Chen had made a comparison beforehand, he was still very impressed that he was able to find out such a subtle difference at a young age.

It’s just that there was another question, which made him extremely confused, so he asked, “Xiao Chu, I have a question. Since these two pieces of jade walls are fakes, why are their traces of being buried in the soil so natural? Could it be jade artifacts? Will it be fake, and the buried traces will be real?"

Chu Chen smiled slightly and said, "This buried trace can also be said to be real. As for the method, it should be the tomb restoration method used."

"The way to restore the tomb?" Everyone's faces showed curiosity. There is actually a way to restore this tomb?

Chu Chen explained to them: "The burial restoration method is actually a comprehensive method. First, create a burial environment that requires age, put imitation jade pieces, and match the same period of soil, metal remnants, silk, hemp, and organic matter. Then humidify and heat it, and take it out after 3-6 months.”

"Then put it into a high-pressure oxygen chamber to oxidize its surface, and take it out after 6 months to achieve the color, smell and oxidation degree produced during the same period. It is difficult to identify old imitation jade wares in this way. Even experts sometimes have difficulty in judging the authenticity, and can only identify it from the process method.”

"No, it's too troublesome to do so!" Josie said with a look of surprise.

Chu Chen shook his head and said, "Although it is troublesome, the profit is also high! Let's count half a year to make jade, and one year to make it old. One and a half years, the cost is not much money, but you can earn a lot of money." Tens or even millions, and except for the hard work of the first six months of making jade, the rest of the time is just waiting, such a high income, if it were you, would you be tempted?"

Wan Nianqing sighed: "I spent 120 million HKD on this pair of jade walls, and the profit can be imagined. Fortunately, there is still a lot of technical content in making this, otherwise most of us in this industry would have to drill. "

"Yes!" Chu Chen also said with emotion: "Although there are not many high-quality imitations like these two jade walls, there are still many high-quality high-quality ancient jade wares in general. Difficulties have also caused the price of high ancient jade to stagnate."

Wan Nianqing shook his head when he heard the words. After this experience, he will be more cautious when buying high-grade ancient jade in the future. If he is not sure, he will basically not consider high-grade ancient jade with a level of more than one million. It can be seen that the high imitation jade wares that can be confused with the real ones will do great harm to the high ancient jade market.

"By the way, Brother Chen, is there any simple way to identify it like the tomb restoration method?" Liu Sizhe asked.

Chu Chen replied: "Yes, but it will take a little longer. You can put the jade in a container with fresh sliced ​​lemons under it, and take it out after three or four days. If it is a jade that uses the tomb restoration method, Then the smell of grave soil on it will be reduced or gone."

"In that case, there is no way to tell the authenticity of the jade at that time?" Wu Ke said with a frown.

Chu Chen smiled slightly and said, "It's definitely impossible to use this method to identify it at the time, but I don't know about other methods, maybe the master will know!"

Hearing what Chu Chen said, everyone couldn't help but think of a sentence, the Tao is one foot tall, and the devil is one foot tall. If you want to buy ancient jade articles in the future, you must be more careful.

"Well, Xiao Chu, I wonder if you still want to change?" Wan Nianqing asked a little nervously.

"Change, I'll just change this dice bowl." Chu Chen replied, after all, such an exquisite Xuande dice bowl is rare, and it's a good thing to be able to collect it.

Wan Nianqing was overjoyed to hear Chu Chen's answer, and quickly asked, "Then for the remaining money, do you plan to ask for money, or pick another thing?"

Chu Chen thought for a while and replied, "Let's pick and choose first!"

"Okay!" Wan Nianqing smiled and asked the others, "What about you? Do you want to go down together?"

The three girls all shook their heads, saying that it would be fine to sit here, while Liu Sizhe planned to go downstairs with Chu Chen. ...

Chu Chen and Liu Sizhe went downstairs together, and looked for their targets.

Wan Nianqing's antique shop mainly deals in bamboo and wood tooth corner carvings and coins, and there are a small amount of other items, which can also be seen from his interest in collecting, otherwise he would not exchange things with Chu Chen for that Three silver coins.

Although Chu Chen prefers porcelain and jade, he also likes other types of objects as long as they can reflect a good artistic value.And the things in Wannianqing's store happened to be good, so when he went downstairs, he appraised and selected them with relish.

It’s just been a long time to choose, and I found a few good things, but either the value is low or the value is high. In fact, he doesn’t have to be of the same value, but now there is more time anyway, and I can find one that is of similar value. Well, if that doesn't work, just pick one of these things.

After a while, he finally found something of similar value, a tortoiseshell carved Ruyi.

Hawksbill is an organic gemstone. Why is it called organic? To put it simply, this thing is actually the shell of a sea turtle called a hawksbill.

The tortoiseshell tortoiseshell is crystal clear in texture, clear and beautiful in pattern, soft and bright in color, and the handicraft ornaments made of it are dazzling, precious and luxurious, and the taste can be described as noble and elegant.

In ancient folklore, the tortoise shell was also covered with a layer of mystery.It is believed to be able to live for 1500 years, making it a veritable "thousand-year turtle".Because of this, tortoiseshell has become a symbol of longevity and auspiciousness.

Moreover, the ancients believed that wearing the carapace of tortoiseshell has the magical effect of detoxifying and warding off evil spirits. Living tortoiseshell can also detect whether there is poison in the diet.Therefore, in ancient times, ornaments made of tortoiseshell were quite popular.

Of course, tortoiseshell is already a protected animal in modern times, and hunting is prohibited, and the tortoiseshell Ruyi that Chu Chen likes obviously cannot be a modern handicraft, but a carving in the late Qing Dynasty.

This Ruyi jade handle is carved from tortoise shell. Its surface is smooth, with yellow, black and brown patterns. It looks translucent, with soft luster, clear and bright, and a warm feeling when held.

Then, Chu Chen took a photo with a bright flashlight, and we can see the beautiful transparent patterns, the transparent blood streaks penetrate into the nail plate, and the spots are in the shape of countless dots, like small broomcorn dots gathered together to form uneven borders of irregular shape.It should be a genuine tortoise shell without a doubt.

This Ruyi handle is carved with squirrel and grape patterns from the head to the tail. The image is vivid and lifelike. The production is round and generous, elegant and light, and no expense is spared. It has the style of the Qianlong period. It should be a fine product made by the court in the late Qing Dynasty.

The squirrel grape decoration was the most common in the Qing Dynasty.The dense stacking of grape fruits symbolizes the harvest and wealth of the five grains; the clusters of grapes also have the meaning of "many". "The good wishes of "bundle harvest" and "wealth and honor".

Moreover, tortoise shells are easy to eat, and tortoise shell wares made before the late Qing Dynasty are rarely seen today. Therefore, it is still rare to find such a high-quality Ruyi made by the court in the late Qing Dynasty.

(End of this chapter)