Description
This circular pen holder, crafted from an emerald green jade, features a relief on the exterior depicting a scene titled “Horseback Hunting on a Mountain in Autumn.” The landscape is rugged with mountain stones, featuring hunters on horseback and animals in full sprint. Engraved along the rim is an imperial poem from 1782 that reads: “Autumn mountains glow as though in spring, and the autumn sky is as clear as though washed; riding out for a leisurely hunt, there is no need for bows and arrows; with falcons on our arms as male servants, we catch wild beasts; relaxed and without toil, our pace is controlled within our grasp; composed by a writer from the Western Capital, perhaps perceiving the principle of the Yuan. Imperially composed by Qianlong in the year of Renyin.” The poem and the seal imprint, reading “understanding is not far away,” correspond well with the content depicted on the pen holder.