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28 Pearls.
ambassadors
knelt at the door of the audience -chamber, bearing in their hands a
golden tray full of Pearls and gold work. On approaching the throne,
they threw the contents of the tray at the feet of the emperor ; much
to the delight of the courtiers, who were permitted to gather them up,
and divide them amongst themselves.
Marco
Polo, in his work on China, tells us that Kubla Khan, the founder of
the 20th Chinese dynasty, who died in 1294, A.D., always presented his
followers at great public festivals, with robes embroidered in gold,
Pearls, and other jewels. Mingti, another Chinese ruler, notorious for
his lavish expenditure, is said to have had his throne, his
furniture, horses' trappings, carriages, and his own and his
courtiers' robes, so profusely covered with Pearls, that after public
processions the ground was often literally strewn with them. The
Chinese Emperor, Kanghi (1661—1722), presented to the Temple of the
Goddess of Grace, on the Buddhist island of Poets, an image of herself,
finished in gold. It was five inches high, and the torso consisted of a
single beautiful Pearl.
The
repeated mention of Pearls in the history of China, and the use made of
them to decorate idols, and as tribute, show the honour in which the
Chinese have always held these jewels. In our own day,
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