Elephant Mountain was very rich in products. In addition to elephants, there were many rare animals and plants. Of course, all of these precious products were inferior to elephants. The most iconic product here was elephants. In addition to hundreds of wild elephants in the depths of the mountain, several small forces in the vicinity had also domesticated elephants. There were more than 300 of these elephants, which could be considered a very powerful force. Of course, the Pyu Imperial Court controlled even more elephants, at least thousands of them.
Elephants were very big and strong. They were a very good animal force. Whether it was used for transporting goods or training in combat, they were very good resources. The most powerful force of the Pyu Empire was the fearsome Elephant Troops. After these elephants were trained into Elephant Troops, their power was very great. This was also the main reason why the Pyu Empire was able to gain a foothold in the south. Once an elephant charged, its power was very terrifying. Cavalry soldiers in the era of cold weapons could not stop it at all.
When the Elephant Troops fought against cavalry, they had a great advantage. Of course, the current Tang Empire was naturally not afraid of the Elephant Troops. The Tang Empire already had artillery. As long as the artillery was fired, the elephants would be frightened and run around. Not only would they not be able to threaten the enemy, but they would also be able to scatter their own troops.
Of course, for the Pyu Empire and the small forces in the north of the Pyu Empire, the Elephant Troops were definitely a very good trump card. As long as a small force had the Elephant Troops in their hands, other forces would not dare to provoke them easily.
Since Ang Lee and his group had come to Elephant Mountain, they naturally had to appreciate the beautiful scenery around Elephant Mountain. Otherwise, this trip would be in vain.
The average lifespan of an elephant was longer than that of a human. In the Tang Dynasty, the average lifespan of an elephant was at least twice that of a human. In later times, the average lifespan of an elephant was only slightly higher than that of a human. Perhaps in a few years, the lifespan of an elephant would not be comparable to that of a human. After all, how could the living environment of an elephant be compared to that of a human?
Since elephants were born, grow old, get sick, and die, there was naturally no point in keeping an old elephant. These old hand-raised elephants would be slaughtered by their owners. Their meat could be used to fill people's stomachs, and even their bones could be made into handicrafts. In particular, ivory was the most precious part of an elephant. The price of ivory was much higher than that of elephant meat. Because of the high price of ivory, elephant thieves were relatively common in the Pyu Empire. Many thieves specifically targeted the elephant's tusks. After hunting the elephant, they quickly dug out the tusks and then slipped away. This brought a lot of trouble to the pursuit. After all, the tusks were not particularly big. It was very difficult to be discovered if they wanted to hide in a transport vehicle. This was a very troublesome matter.
However, because ivory was very precious, as long as the thief was caught, what awaited him was absolutely an unimaginable nightmare. He would definitely be severely punished. This punishment was definitely more terrifying than being beheaded. Even if the punishment was extremely severe, there were still people who were willing to take the risk. After all, the benefits were there. As long as they stole once without being noticed, they could save decades of hard work. This temptation was really too great. For many poor people, it was worth the risk. As long as there were enough benefits, there would always be people who would choose to take the risk.
In order to curry favor with Ang Lee, the local small forces gave their treasured ivory products to Ang Lee. These ivory products had undergone many processes. There were a lot of relief carvings on them. They looked quite exquisite. This made Ang Lee very satisfied. In order to live up to the good intentions of these small forces, Ang Lee took it as a matter of course.
Since ivory was very precious, there would naturally be people who would choose to fake it. This kind of profitable business would never lack people. In order to distinguish whether ivory was fake or not, first of all, one had to observe the color and cracks of the ivory itself. The skin of ivory carvings would age. After a long time, the surface would begin to turn yellow. Then, it would gradually turn from pale yellow to turmeric, dark yellow, and finally light brown. Moreover, on the same piece of ivory, the color would often be different. With the change in color, there would be light hair-like lines on the surface of some artifacts, which were called sparrow silk. The older the tooth, the more, the darker, the deeper, and the longer the freckles, and then the freckles would appear. When the counterfeiters made old ivory, the skin was colored but dull. There was no paste. The cracks of the sparrow silk were also unnatural. It smelled like smoke.
Secondly, one could distinguish it from the artistic style of the carvings. For example, the Guanyin statue carved in the early Qing Dynasty of the future generations had concise clothing lines, which had the style of ivory carvings of the Ming Dynasty. Due to the use of depth and knife skills, it was round and straight. The clothing lines were drooping and calm, which gave people a sense of calmness. The modern imitation of the Guanyin statue had complicated clothing lines. The three-dimensional sense was not strong, and the knife skills were weak.
Also, one had to pay attention to the new carving of the old material. The so-called new carving of the old material was to use the old ivory to carve into the ancient famous products. Or the old ivory was damaged, and a part of it was taken to be used as the ancient ivory carvings. In this regard, we could make an identification from the two aspects of material and craftsmanship.
Of course, there was also the identification of the authenticity. In addition to paying attention to the counterfeiting method, one should also be vigilant against the counterfeiting, especially for the famous ivory carvings with signatures. Many people would imitate them, but there was still a big difference between the counterfeiting and the authentic ones. The authentic ones were not only fresh and beautiful, but also had a consistent momentum, as if they were done in one go. On the other hand, the counterfeiting ones were slanted, the strokes were straight, and the thickness of the strokes were consistent. There was a big difference from the authentic ones.
The color of the ivory was also an important basis for judging the authenticity of the fake ones. Color and cracks. Fresh ivory was generally white or light yellow. After a certain period of playing, stroking, or leaving for a certain period of time, the ivory would gradually become light yellow, dark yellow, and finally yellowish brown. The same ivory product often had different shades of color. As time went by, under the influence of temperature and humidity, some ivory products would have shallow cracks on the surface, like hair. These cracks were continuous. Some were horizontal, some were vertical, and some were circular. Ivory lovers thought that these cracks were a unique beauty, and they affectionately called them laugh lines. Counterfeit ivory looked dull, and the cracks were very unnatural. There was also a strange smell. Tooth Lines
The outer layer of ivory was enamel, and the inner layer was hard protein and calcium phosphate. There were many hard protein tubes radiating out from the pulp of the tooth. These thin tubes formed a cross pattern. These patterns were similar to parallel ripples when viewed from a vertical section. This structure was unique to ivory, and counterfeit ivory did not have this characteristic. Ivory contained oil, so it was glossy and smooth to the touch.
Ang Lee knew a little about ivory carving, but if Ang Lee was asked to carve ivory, Ang Lee knew that he did not have the ability. However, Ang Lee was really interested in carving ivory, so he asked the local ivory carving master to learn a little about this interesting technique.
The ivory carving master naturally did not dare to offend Ang Lee, so he told his carving experience to Ang Lee. Of course, ivory carving was not something that could be learned in a short time. Even if the carving master told Ang Lee everything he knew, Ang Lee could not carve a beautiful work. Without three to five years of practice, he could not carve a good work. Of course, Ang Lee did not expect to rely on ivory carving to make a living. It was purely a hobby. It was also good to carve for fun when he had nothing to do.
Ivory products were very precious, so they had to be preserved very carefully. There were still many skills about the preservation of ivory products. For example, ivory carvings could not be exposed to the sun. Ivory carvings were afraid of direct sunlight. Direct sunlight would cause partial deformation, fracture, and discoloration of the ivory carvings. In addition, new color ivory was white. Although it had been waxed, it should still be avoided from direct sunlight to avoid yellowing.
If ivory carvings were dirty, they had to be treated differently. Old color carvings could not be wet and could only be wiped with a soft cloth or a soft brush. Smoked carvings could be wiped with a wet cloth. As long as the hair, eyes, and other parts were not wet, they could be washed with water. Generally speaking, old color carvings and smoked carvings were dirty and did not need to be washed with water. It was very good to be re-waxed. New color carvings were divided into half color and full color carvings. Full-color carvings could not be washed with water. Semi-color carvings could be washed with water as long as the colored parts were not wet. Generally speaking, it could be wiped with a fine white cotton cloth. If it was washed with water, it had to be dried in a cool place. It was best to cover it with a white cloth and not let the wind blow. After it was dried, it had to be re-waxed and wiped with a brown brush dipped in hot paraffin. Finally, it had to be wiped with a fine white cotton cloth.
Every ivory carvings had to be equipped with a wooden base and an outer packaging box. The outer packaging box was generally made of thick cardboard and was pasted with brocade. It was called a brocade box. It looked more high-end. The ivory ornaments were placed on the soft pouch in the brocade box, and there were two or three cardboard clips. One was stuck on the wooden base, and the other one or two clips were stuck on the thick and sturdy parts of the ivory ornaments that could withstand the force. This way, the ivory ornaments could be safely transported, moved, and stored. There were also some ivory ornaments that were placed vertically in the brocade box, but they were all facing outwards. Every time they were placed in the brocade box, they had to be kept in their original state. The insertion position of each clip could not be changed at will.
Every ivory carvings had a wooden base. Except for a few carvings, because of the shape of the carvings, bamboo nails were usually placed at the bottom of the ivory carvings to connect with the wooden base. Therefore, the wooden base and the ivory carvings were connected together.
When moving the ivory carvings, the place where one reached out to pinch should be the middle part of the ivory carvings, and it was a stronger part. It was best to use both hands to hold the ivory carvings instead of the wooden base. Because the wooden base was not valuable, even if it fell, it would not be a big deal. It was the worst way to only use the wooden base to move the ivory carvings. There were two bone pins outside the brocade box, which could be inserted into the cloth buckle to fasten the box lid. Every time after the ivory carvings were placed in the brocade box, the bone pins should be inserted. In this way, even if the box was accidentally overturned, it would not damage the ivory carvings.
In three days, Ang Lee received eight exquisite ivory carvings. These ivory carvings were all high-quality goods, and their value was not small. However, they were all given to Ang Lee willingly. They were not forced by Ang Lee. Therefore, Ang Lee did not have any psychological burden when he took these treasures. They were just some exquisite ivory carvings. In Ang Lee's eyes, they were not too precious. He just took them as a small gift.
"Yoav, do you like these ivory carvings? Pick one if you like. "
Ang Lee placed the eight exquisite ivory carvings in front of Zhao Yoav and said.
Zhao Yoav smiled and said, "Just one! You're too stingy! Shouldn't you leave the rest to others? "
"Yes! Aren't there a few more in Chang 'an City? If you want to leave it for them, you should leave it for them. "
Ang Lee said helplessly.
"Then I don't want any of them. You can keep them all!"
Zhao Yoav pouted and threw a tantrum. This made Ang Lee feel very interesting. Perhaps all the women in the world were like this. They liked to throw tantrums and hoped to be loved by others. Ang Lee was not destined to be hers alone. She was naturally dissatisfied in her heart. Although she knew this was the truth, she was still a little unhappy in her heart. Even if Ang Lee lied to her, it would be good! It would also make her feel better.
Girls! They always hoped to be cheated, especially beautiful girls liked to be cheated. They liked to be immersed in the sweetness of being cheated. This fake sweetness made them very happy. This gave the hypocrites a chance. Some guys who were good at sweet talk took advantage of this point of women and cheated girls crazily. They would be embarrassed to say that they were good at talking about love if they had eight or ten girls in a year.
"Okay, okay, okay. I'll give them all to you. All eight of them are yours. My Yoav's wife, you're the most beautiful one."
Ang Lee said with a smile.
Zhao Yoav rolled her eyes at Ang Lee and lay in Ang Lee's arms contentedly. She said softly, "This is what you said. They're all mine. Then I won't be polite."
"You're welcome. Anyway, there's no one else here. They don't know about these ivory carvings. As long as Yoav is happy, it's fine. Come, give me a kiss."
Ang Lee asked for a kiss greasily.
Zhao Yoav naturally satisfied Ang Lee's request. Soon, an indescribable moaning sound came from the open-air grassland.
The small forces in the north of the Pyu Dynasty, in addition to offering ivory products, also provided Ang Lee with a lot of delicious food. Among them, the main delicacy was the elephant meat. All kinds of elephant meat were local specialties. Each of them tasted very good. This made Ang Lee quite satisfied.
Among them, Ang Lee was most satisfied with the stir-fried elephant whip. The elephant whip was not ordinary. A complete elephant whip was more than one meter. It was thicker than a human's thigh. The amount was very sufficient. More than a dozen people couldn't finish it in one meal.
In order to entertain Ang Lee, this distinguished guest, a small force deliberately took advantage of the fresh meat of a male elephant to satisfy their taste buds. After eating the elephant whip, Ang Lee couldn't control himself. This made Zhao Yoav suffer. She scolded Ang Lee every night.
You've already exceeded your reading limit for today. If you want to read more, please log in.
Login
Select text and click 'Report' to let us know about any bad translation.
