The White Jade Treasure in the Blue Box

An unexpected encounter with Guanyin, a little collector’s instinct, and a rather beautiful piece of white jade.

There are certain shops I keep going back to.

Not because I need anything in particular. Quite the opposite. I usually have absolutely no idea what I’m looking for.

But that’s the beauty of Philippine surplus shops. You walk in expecting nothing, and occasionally you walk out carrying something you never imagined finding.

Over the years, I’ve got to know a few dealers who understand my rather peculiar taste in things.

One of them has been particularly good at finding interesting pieces for me.

And one day, about two years ago, he had something waiting.

Something from the Back Office

I had barely arrived when the owner disappeared into his office.

He returned carrying a blue, fabric-covered presentation box.

Now, that was unusual.

Most things in a surplus shop are displayed on shelves, stacked in corners or squeezed between furniture that has seen considerably better days.

But this was different.

He opened the box.

Inside was a beautifully carved figure of a woman, dressed in flowing robes and holding an elegant fan.

The stone was predominantly white, with fascinating patches of deep green running through it.

I knew immediately what I was looking at.

Jade.

Unfortunately, so did the owner.

There would be no bargain-basement treasure hunt this time.

But I liked the piece far too much to leave it behind.

I did a little research while I was still at the shop, and what I found convinced me that the asking price was reasonable.

So the lady came home with me.

Complete with her carved wooden stand, which even had its own separate compartment in the box.

Someone had clearly taken care when preparing this piece for its previous owner.

Meet Guanyin

The figure represents Guanyin, also known as Kuan Yin, one of the most beloved figures in East Asian Buddhist tradition.

Guanyin is the bodhisattva of compassion, associated with mercy, kindness and the willingness to hear the suffering of others.

Although the figure has roots in the Indian Buddhist bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara, Guanyin gradually became widely represented in feminine form in Chinese religious art.

Today, she appears in countless variations.

Sometimes she holds a vase or a willow branch. Sometimes she carries a child. In other representations, she is seated in quiet contemplation.

My Guanyin holds a beautifully carved fan.

Her long robes seem to flow around her, and the sculptor has made clever use of the stone’s natural green areas, particularly in the fan and folds of her clothing.

The entire figure is only 17 centimetres tall.

Yet there’s an astonishing amount of detail packed into those few centimetres.

The Fascination of Jade

Jade has been treasured in China for thousands of years.

It has traditionally been associated with virtues such as purity, integrity and wisdom, and it has played an important role in Chinese art, ritual and personal adornment.

Interestingly, the word jade actually covers two different minerals: nephrite and jadeite.

Both are genuine jade, although their properties and market values can differ considerably.

My figure came with a label identifying it as a jade carving, but the paperwork doesn’t specify which mineral was used.

And that’s something I haven’t yet established independently.

What I can say is that the stone feels remarkably cool to the touch, even in our Philippine heat.

That sensation is one of the things I enjoy about handling it, although it isn’t proof of authenticity on its own.

The figure weighs 280 grams without its wooden stand.

For something with so many delicate, flowing details, it feels quite substantial in the hand.

And the green markings give it a character that plain white stone simply wouldn’t have.

A Journey Nobody Can Quite Explain

There’s another aspect of this little lady that intrigues me.

I found her in a Japanese surplus shop in the Philippines.

But Guanyin belongs to a religious and artistic tradition with deep roots in China, and the figure was presented in a box bearing Chinese characters and the English words Jade Carvings.

How did she get here?

Was she once displayed in a Japanese home? Was she bought as a gift? Did someone bring her back from a trip to China?

I haven’t the faintest idea.

And I’m not going to invent an exotic journey just to make the story more exciting.

What I do know is that she eventually ended up in a Philippine surplus shop, where the owner kept her safely in his office.

And when I arrived, he knew exactly whom to show her to.

Not Everything Needs a Price Tag

Collectors are often asked what their objects are worth.

It’s a reasonable question, of course.

But it isn’t always the most interesting one.

I paid more for this Guanyin than I usually spend on my little surplus discoveries. Both the dealer and I knew that this was something worth taking a closer look at.

Whether she turns out to be particularly valuable is another matter.

Perhaps one day I’ll have the stone examined by a gemmologist and learn a little more about it.

For now, I enjoy the craftsmanship, the extraordinary green patterns and the quiet expression on her face.

And I rather like the fact that she wasn’t sitting on a dusty shelf waiting to be discovered.

This time, the dealer had already done the discovering.

He just waited for me to turn up.

Which, come to think of it, is a very convenient arrangement for a collector.