What is Shoushan Stone?

Located in the northern mountainous suburbs of Fuzhou, the capital city of Fujian province, lies the region known as Shoushan, which means (Longevity mountains), with its peaks of over a thousand meters, it’s like a fairyland, with its charming and beautiful scenery. Deposited within these mountains is a lovely and precious material Shoushan stone, and it’s also known as agalmatolite. Treasured for its attractive bright colors and alluring fine grains, in appearance varying from its exquisiteness and unique beauty, this stone can be sculptured into objects ranging from the supremely simple to the extraordinarily splendid.

Shoushan stone has long been cherished in China, especially by fine artists and calligraphers involved in the creation of seals. In “A Poem Celebrating Shoushan Stone,” Gao Shinong (1916–1988), an expert in seal cutting, praises its beauty across the millennia: “The excellent stone of Shoushan has similar qualities of jade, with its magnificent colour of blue-green, yellow, red, and white. Since the Southern Dynasties (420–589) it has been honored by the many for its splendor both in seal carving and sculptures, lapidary marvels have emerged to this present day.

The natural beauty of Shoushan stone has been an inspiration to many through the ages, from the seal engravers pondering over how best to reveal its charms to the writers contemplating also how best to praise its beauty. But it is only through the marvellous craftsmanship of the artists who have shaped Shoushan stone into myriad forms that it has been endowed with a humanistic spirituality that have made Shoushan stone an eternally alluring embodiment of Chinese cultural splendor.

Shoushan stone reached its peak during the Qing Dynasty and there was a huge variety of subjects and figurines, animal statues, seals and even simple household objects. Once there were more than 130 types of Shoushan stone, but today there is only approximately 50 varieties can be found. The superior craftsman-ship and the unique qualities of Shoushan stone are why it is still increasing in value.

In the Qing Dynasty, Shoushan stone was a special and significant product for all the generations of emperors. Their special seal and signature prints was use on some of their private art pieces and they enjoyed printing with their exquisite seals, also you can find Shoushan stone royal seal prints on most of the important official documents from the Qing Dynasty Emperors.