Paperweight with the Three Friends of Winter

玉屏
Jade Screens
During the Song dynasty (960–1279) a large marble or painted screen was often placed as a back wall behind furniture in a living room, library, or entrance hall. Later these items were produced in smaller sizes so that these screens could be set on a desk, table, or cabinet in the studio. By the Ming (1368–1644) and Qing (1644– 1911) dynasties, a jade table screen, often with decoration on both sides and resting on a wooden stand, had come to represent the height of fashion among China's educated elite.
清朝梮玉松竹梅"歲寒三友"圖檉方汒紙
The top side of this paperweight is adorned with bamboo, pine, and plum, known as Three Friends of Winter; they are traditionally associated with an indomitable spirit.
A paperweight is used on the scholar's table to keep paper from moving or curling up while the calligrapher or artist is working, or to hold in place one end of an open handscroll. Usually made of heavy materials such as stone or metal, at its simplest a paperweight is just a flat slab or a round chunk with a flat side. However, many were elaborately decorated, as is this example.