Description:
A JADE SCEPTRE, GUI
China, late Shang dynasty, circa 1200 BC. The scepter is carved out of a richly textured, deep spinach-green jade. A part of the surface has turned white, a consequence of natural alteration of the stone over time: Following the natural fissures in the jade, the alteration has slowly moved from the edges towards the central portion of the scepter which still retains its magnificent green color. The scepter widens slightly towards the rounded cutting edge and a strongly slanted hole for suspension is pierced near the top.
Provenance: From a European private collection.
Published: 4000 Years of Chinese Archaic Jades, The Development of the Jade-Carving Tradition from the Neolithic to the Han Dynasty, by Professor Filippo Salviati, Edition Zacke, Vienna 2017, lot 144.
Condition: Superb condition with natural flaws and fissures to stone, erosion, old wear and traces of use.
Weight: 850 grams
Dimensions: Length 35 cm
This scepter is part of a larger group of ceremonial jade blades from the Shang period. This specific type of scepter, however, decorated with longitudinal carved grooves, is documented primarily in finds of the late Shang period. The elongated, rectangular shape is clearly inspired by earlier Neolithic pieces, while the slightly slanting profile recalls the outline of fu axes. The vertical grooves seem to be a Shang innovation, while the three raised, horizontal lines in the top section of the jade are found on similar blades excavated at the early Bronze Age site of Erlitou (Yanshi, Henan province).
The tomb of Fu Hao (c.1200 BC) has yielded several blades of this type: one of them measures 23 cm and is decorated with similar grooves and raised lines
(CASS 1981, plate 9). Another comparable scepter, half the size of the present one and dated to the late Shang dynasty, Anyang period, is in the Asian Art Museum of San Francisco and comes from the Avery Brundage (1887-1975) collection (accession number B60J515).
玉珪
中國, 商朝晚期,約公元前1200年。玉珪由碧玉雕刻而成,局部因爲玉石自然變化而變白,但仍然保留了美麗的綠色。頂部附近鑽孔可用來懸挂。
來源:歐洲私人收藏
出版: 4000 Years of Chinese Archaic Jades, The Development of the Jade-Carving Tradition from the Neolithic to the Han Dynasty, by Professor Filippo Salviati, Edition Zacke, Vienna 2017, lot 144.
品相:極好品相,天然缺陷和肌理裂紋,老磨損和使用痕跡
重量:850 克
尺寸:長 35 厘米