Description
This Golden Chalice of Eternal Stability was made to be used at the First Stroke Ceremony, on the New Year’s Day of the 4th year of Qianlong reign (1739), by the emperor. The chalice is made of gold, coming with two ears in the shape of kui dragon. Each of the three feet is made in the form of elephant head with curled trunk. The body of the vessel is engraved with entwined branches and jeweled flowers, with a band of square spiral patterns circling the rim of the mouth. Four characters were engraved amongst the band of square spiral patterns, “Jin Ou Yong Gu (eternal stability for the territory),” while the characters engraved on the opposite side reads, “Qian Long Nian Zhi (made during the Qianlong reign).” The body of the chalice was inlaid with pearls, rubies, and sapphires, on a turquoise green background. Due to the wear and tear from years of use, a new golden chalice was ordered to be made in the 2nd year of Jiaqing reign (i.e. the 62nd year of Qianlong reign, 1797). The newly made Golden Chalice of Eternal Stability is now housed at the Palace Museum in Beijing. The original and the new Golden Chalices are nearly the same in terms of size and design. As the golden chalice (jin ou) represents national/imperial power, the Golden Chalice of Eternal Stability undoubtedly makes one of the finest physical embodiments of this motif.