"Winter's Edge" Taihu Scholar's Rock

Sculptural and unusual stone formations have long been fixtures of the Chinese scholars' studio, displayed as sources of beauty and creative inspiration. Known as gongshi, scholars' rocks or viewing stones, these intriguing, organic forms provided a focal point for meditation and inspired traditional ink painting as microcosms of the natural world.

This graceful example is a white taihu stone, beautifully eroded by exposure to water for an open, perforated form with smooth contours and shadowy hollows. Elegant and minimal, the stone has inspired the name "Winter's Edge" for its pale white color, matte surface texture and shimmering iridescence. The taihu stone is elevated by a traditional carved wood base that displays the stone with a dramatic silhouette, reminiscent of a plume of smoke or drifting cloud.