Stones in Chinese gardens or natural settings that are so distinct as to seem out of place are sometimes referred to as Stones That Flew Here. This designation references an obscure Buddhist myth about stones that were magically transported from India to China, landing in unlikely locations where they were incompatible with the local geology. The myth is most likely a way of explaining stones that have been moved by glaciers great distances from their places of origin. The Stone That Flew Here is, as well, a fitting appellation for the above piece of malachite (and any number of other stones as well) that were flown from their country of origin to the United States. Hand-carried by ardent connoisseurs, stones from China, Japan, Southeast Asia and elsewhere have been flown into American collections for decades. Air travel has accelerated the spread of viewing stone appreciation, with American collectors flying trans-Pacific routes to participate in exhibitions in China and Japan, and Asian experts and dealers traveling eastward to spread the lithic gospel in North America.

I have mounted this stone so that it overhangs the left side of the base in order to give the idea that it is coming in for a landing. The base, which was carved in China for another stone, has been redesigned to suggest the mountain range in which the stone might touch down.

SubStance #146, Vol. 47, no. 2, 2018 ©2018 Johns Hopkins University Press and SubStance, Inc: pp. 59-67.