The form of this pendant, known as she, derives from bronze archer's rings of the Shang dynasty and Warring States period. By the Han dynasty, it lost its utilitarian function and transformed into an ornamental plaque, characterized by its oval form and pointed top (also referred to as 'chicken-heart shape'), carved with scrolling motifs or mythical creatures. Such pendants were frequently carved in jade, including one excavated in 1968 at Lingshan, Mancheng County in Baoding, Hebei province, from the tomb of Prince Liu Sheng's wife, Dou Wan, now in the Hebei Provincial Center for Cultural Heritage Preservation, Shijiazhuang, published in The Complete Collection of Jades Unearthed in China, vol. 1, Beijing, 2005, pl. 192; and another from the Edward and Louise B. Sonnenschein Collection, now in the Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, included in the exhibition Chinese Jades from Han to Ch'ing, Asia Society, New York, 1980, cat. no. 156.

The establishment of the Qing dynasty in China facilitated the rise of archaism as the founding emperors looked to ancient Han-Chinese culture to establish their legitimacy to the throne. In this cultural renaissance, jade versions of these Han she pendants were created; see a similar spinach green jade she, elaborately carved with chilong, birds and phoenix among scrolling clouds, attributed to the mid-Qing dynasty, excavated in Beijing, now in the Capital Museum, Beijing, illustrated in Yang Boda, ed., Zhongguo yuqi quanji [Complete collection of Chinese jades], vol. 2, Shijiazhuang, 2005, no. 159, together with a white jade example, carved with a cloud motif, in the Palace Museum, Beijing, no. 167. Compare also a white jade pendant of this type, carved with chilong and phoenix, attributed to the Qianlong period, sold in our Paris rooms, 18th December 2012, lot 101.

此珮呈韘形，韘為古代騎射工具，開弓扣弦時護指之用，初為青銅質，最早見於商周戰國時期。至漢代，韘逐漸從實用器物轉變為裝飾佩戴，中孔變形，周圍多雕飾，因其上尖下橢圓，故又稱雞心珮，多為玉製，可見一例，1968年出土於河北保定滿城縣陵山劉勝王后竇綰墓，現存於河北省文物保護中心，石家莊，錄於《中國出土玉器全集》，卷1，北京，2005年，圖版192；另見一例，Edward 及 Louise B. Sonnenschein 舊藏，現存芝加哥藝術博物館，芝加哥，展《Chinese Jades from Han to Ch'ing》，亞洲協會，紐約，1980年，編號156。

滿人入主中原後，亟欲崇尚漢風以正其天子之名，仿古之風因此於清尤盛，玉製仿漢式韘形珮亦應運而生。可見一相類碧玉例，雕雲蝠及鴛鴦紋，斷代清中，出土於北京，現存北京首都博物館，錄楊伯達編，《中國玉器全集（中）》，石家莊，2005年，編號159，同見一白玉例，雕流雲紋，藏北京故宮博物院，編號167。亦見一相類白玉例，雕龍鳳紋，斷代乾隆，售巴黎蘇富比2012年12月18日，編號101。