Masterfully incised Chinese green jade brush pot. A tranquil Daoist traveler is pictured making his way through overlapping rocky outcrops, interspersed with flourishing foliage. A large concentric opening is swept downward to form the large inner cylinder. The brush pot would have been an essential tool for many literati to have cleaned their bamboo brushes, ensuring their stream of consciousness would not be disturbed. Jadestone has a rich quality, with spinach-green coloration, natural inclusions, and a very smooth polish. Note: Jade, as a stone, has five virtues. Its glossiness and warmth is like benevolence. Because inside and outside is the same, so that knowing the outside one knows the inside, this may be likened to righteousness. Its far-reaching sound (when struck) may be heard from afar, like wisdom. It is not easily bent, but can be broken, which may be likened to courage. Jade can be sharpened, but not to the point where it can injure people; this quality is like self-regulation or restraint.