Record of the Commemorative Tablet by Imperial Manufacture of the Great Buddha Temple of Longxing at Zhengding 1644 - 1911

This is a record of the Commemorative Tablet made under imperial manufacture by Dong Gao. Let’s consider the book’s cover. Its decoration, although stylized, evokes a profound sense of growth and natural order. We can discern a latticework of vegetal motifs that ripple across the surface. This speaks to the ancient symbolic language where the vine, or stem, represents lineage, continuity, and the interconnectedness of all things. This book itself, an object designed to preserve knowledge and memory, becomes a vessel. Similarly to the Rod of Asclepius, it serves as a symbolic repository, intertwining notions of time and cultural memory. The act of commemorating, etched in the tablets and later bound in this volume, is a ritual of preservation. It reflects a deep human desire to hold onto the past, ensuring it continues to inform the present and future. The cyclical nature of plant life, mirrored in the book’s motifs, thus reflects the non-linear progression of history. Symbols resurface, evolve, and are continually imbued with new significance across time.