The Imperial Seal of China, or the Heirloom Seal of the Realm (Traditional Chinese: 傳國璽; Simplified Chinese: 传国玺) is a Chinese jade seal carved out of the He Shi Bi, a historically famous piece of jade. China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National Jade is an Ornamental stone. The term jade is applied to two different rocks that are made up of different Silicate minerals. The He Shi Bi ( is a piece of jade which plays an important part in many historical stories in Ancient China Jade is an Ornamental stone. The term jade is applied to two different rocks that are made up of different Silicate minerals.
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Creation
In 221 BC, the Seal was created when Qin Shihuang destroyed the remaining Warring States and united China under the Qin Dynasty. Qin Shi Huang ( (259 BC – September 10 210 BC personal name Yíng Zhèng, was king of the Chinese State of Qin from 247 BCE to 221 BCE (during the The Warring States Period ( also known as the Era of Warring States covers the period from some time in the 5th century BC to the unification of China by the China ( Wade-Giles ( Mandarin) Chung¹kuo² is a cultural region, an ancient Civilization, and depending on perspective a National Not to be confused with the Qing Dynasty, the last dynasty of China The He Shi Bi was a famous piece of jade stone which previously belonged to the Zhao state. The He Shi Bi ( is a piece of jade which plays an important part in many historical stories in Ancient China Zhao ( Pinyin: zhào Traditional Chinese: 趙 Simplified Chinese: 赵 was a Chinese State during Passing into the hands of the new Emperor of China, he ordered it made into his Imperial seal. The Emperor of China ( refers to any sovereign of Imperial China reigning since the founding of the Qin Dynasty in 221 BC until the fall of The words “受命于天 既寿永昌”(roughly translated as "The Mandate is received from Heaven, May He have Longevity and Prosperity") were written by Prime Minister Li Si, and carved onto the seal by Sun Shou. Li Si ( (ca 280 BC - September or October 208 BC was the influential Prime Minister (or Chancellor of the feudal state and later of the dynasty of Qin, between
Propagation
At the death of the second Emperor of Qin, his successor Ziying profferred the seal to the new emperor of the Han Dynasty, whereafter it was known as the "Han Heirloom Seal of the Realm". The Emperor of China ( refers to any sovereign of Imperial China reigning since the founding of the Qin Dynasty in 221 BC until the fall of Ziying ( ( ? - end of January 206 BC was the last ruler of the Qin Dynasty of China, ruling as King of Qin (秦王 from mid-October to the beginning of December The Han Dynasty ( 206 BC–220 AD followed the Qin Dynasty and preceded the Three Kingdoms in China. At the end of the Western Han Dynasty in AD 9, Wang Mang, the new ruler, forced the Han empress dowager to hand over the Seal. The Han Dynasty ( 206 BC–220 AD followed the Qin Dynasty and preceded the Three Kingdoms in China. Wang Mang ( (45 BC&ndashOctober 6 23 Courtesy name Jujun (巨君 was a Han Dynasty official who seized the throne from the Liu family The empress dowager, in anger, threw the Seal on the ground, chipping one corner. Later Wang Mang ordered the corner to be restored with gold. Wang Mang ( (45 BC&ndashOctober 6 23 Courtesy name Jujun (巨君 was a Han Dynasty official who seized the throne from the Liu family
This seal passed on even as dynasties rose and fell. It was seen as a legitimising device, signalling the Mandate of Heaven. During turbulent periods, such as the Three Kingdoms period, the seal became the object of rivalry and armed conflict. The Three Kingdoms period ( is a period in the History of China, part of an era of disunity called the Six Dynasties following immediately the loss of Regimes which possessed the seal declared themselves, and are often regarded historically, as legitimate. At the end of the restored Han Dynasty in the 3rd Century AD, Sun Jian found the Imperial Seal on the body of a court servant who had committed suicide by diving into a well. The Han Dynasty ( 206 BC–220 AD followed the Qin Dynasty and preceded the Three Kingdoms in China. Sun Jian (155 &ndash 191 was a military general and minor Warlord during the late Eastern Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms era in ancient China His son Sun Ce gave the Seal to Yuan Shu in return for 3000 soldiers, which he used to found the Kingdom of Wu. Sun Ce (175 &ndash 200 was a military general and Warlord during the late Eastern Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms era in ancient China. This article is about the warlord during the Eastern Han Dynasty Eastern Wu ( Chinese: 東吳 Pinyin: Dōng Wú also known as Sun Wu ( Traditional Chinese: 孫吳 pinyin Sūn Wú refers to a When Yuan Shu was defeated, the Seal came into the hands of Cao Cao, whose son Cao Pi proclaimed the Wei Dynasty as the legitimate successor state to Han and the other rival dynasties Shu-Han and Wu to be illegitimate. This article is about the warlord during the Eastern Han Dynasty Cáo Cāo ( 曹[[wikt 操|操]] 155 &ndash March 15, 220) was a regional Warlord and the penultimate Chancellor of the Cao Pi (曹丕 187 - June 29, 226) formally Emperor Wen of (Cao Wei (曹魏文帝 Courtesy name Zihuan (子桓 was Cao Wei ( was one of the empires that competed for control of China during the Three Kingdoms period Shu Han ( Traditional Chinese: 蜀漢 Pinyin: Shǔ Hàn sometimes known as the Kingdom of Shu (蜀 shǔ was one of the Three Kingdoms competing
Loss
The Seal was passed through the Wei Dynasty, Jin Dynasty, Sixteen Kingdoms period, Sui Dynasty and Tang Dynasty, but was lost to history in the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period (907-960). Cao Wei ( was one of the empires that competed for control of China during the Three Kingdoms period The Jìn Dynasty ( 265 – 420) one of the Six Dynasties, followed the Three Kingdoms period and preceded the Southern and Northern Dynasties The Sixteen Kingdoms ( or less commonly the Sixteen States, were a collection of numerous short-lived sovereign states in China proper and its neighboring areas The Sui Dynasty ( 581 - 618 AD and in the undertaking of other construction projects including the reconstruction of the Great Wall. The Tang Dynasty ( Middle Chinese: dhɑng (June 18 618&ndashJune 4 907 was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui Dynasty and followed by Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms ( 907-960 was an era of political upheaval in China, beginning in the Tang Dynasty and ending in the Song Dynasty.
Three theories exist as to how it was lost:
- At the end of the Tang Dynasty, when the last Emperor died by self-immolation. The Tang Dynasty ( Middle Chinese: dhɑng (June 18 618&ndashJune 4 907 was an imperial dynasty of China preceded by the Sui Dynasty and followed by
- In AD 946 when the Emperor Taizu of Liao captured the last Emperor of the Jin state. Events By Place Europe Eadred I succeeds his brother as king of England. Taizu of the Liao Dynasty was emperor of the Khitan Empire (907-926
- The Seal came into the hands of the Yuan emperors. The Yuan Dynasty ( Pinyin: Yuáncháo Dai Ön Ulus (Дай Юан Улс was a ruling Dynasty founded by the Mongol leader Kublai When the Ming armies captured the Yuan capital in 1369, it captured just one out of the eleven personal Seals of the Yuan emperors. The Ming Dynasty ( or Empire of the Great Ming ( was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol -led The Heirloom Seal was not found. In 1370, Ming armies invaded Mongolia and captured some treasures brought there by the retreating Yuan emperor. Mongolia (mɒŋˈɡoʊliə, literally Mongol country/nation,) is a Landlocked Country in East However, the Heirloom Seal was again not among these.
In any case, the Seal was known to be lost by the beginning of the Ming Dynasty. The Ming Dynasty ( or Empire of the Great Ming ( was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol -led Both the Ming and the Qing dynasties did not have the Heirloom Seal. Not to be confused with Qin Dynasty, the first dynasty of Imperial China This partly explains the Qing Emperors' obsession with creating numerous imperial seals, in order to reduce the significance of the Heirloom Seal.
Recent developments
Since the Qing Dynasty, several seals have been claimed to be the lost Heirloom Seal (for an example, see here). Not to be confused with Qin Dynasty, the first dynasty of Imperial China One of these was even stored in the Forbidden City alongside other imperial seals prior to the Qianlong era. The Forbidden City was the Chinese imperial Palace from the mid- Ming Dynasty to the end of the Qing Dynasty. Emperor Qianlong (Chinese 乾隆 Qiánlóng, Wade-Giles' Ch'ien-Lung', Mongolian Tengeriig Tetgesen Khaan, born Hongli (弘历 September However, none of these claims have been confirmed by experts. The one held by the Qing imperial palace was found to be made of earth, not jade. In at least one modern case, the seal concerned was found to be a personal seal of an Emperor, rather than the Heirloom Imperial Seal.
See also
- Seal (Chinese)
- Seal script
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