A jade sculpture of an oblong cicada. The top is curved with carved lines to detail the head. The middle and bottom are shaped into two longer points with three gold shapes on them. It is light grey in color with brown coloration in the engraved parts.
Photo © President and Fellows of Harvard College
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Photo © President and Fellows of Harvard College

A jade sculpture of an oblong cicada. The image is shown with the sculpture lying flat and head pointing upward. The top is curved with carved lines to detail the head and antennas. The middle and bottom are shaped into two longer points with three gold shapes on them, two closer to the top and one near the bottom-right. It is light grey in color with brown coloration in the engraved parts and in the space between the wings at the center.

Gallery Text

During the Warring States and Han periods, jades functioned not only as ritual and burial items, but also as objects of personal adornment for the living. Other luxury materials, such as gold, bronze, and glass began to be incorporated with jades with greater frequency.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
1943.50.274
Title
Jade Cicada with Patches of Gold Foil
Classification
Ritual Implements
Work Type
figurine
Date
1st century BCE-1st century CE
Places
Creation Place: East Asia, China
Period
Han dynasty, 206 BCE-220 CE
Culture
Chinese
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/204709

Location

Location
Level 1, Room 1740, Early Chinese Art, Arts of Ancient China from the Neolithic to the Bronze Age
View this object's location on our interactive map

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Polished, originally light bluish nephrite, largely discolored and softened
Dimensions
H. 6.4 x W. 2.8 x Thickness 1 cm (2 1/2 x 1 1/8 x 3/8 in.)
Weight 27 g

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
[Yamanaka & Co., New York, January 7, 1941] sold; to Grenville L. Winthrop, New York (1941-1943), bequest; to Fogg Art Museum, 1943.

Published Text

Catalogue
Ancient Chinese Jades from the Grenville L. Winthrop Collection in the Fogg Art Museum, Harvard University
Authors
Max Loehr and Louisa G. Fitzgerald Huber
Publisher
Fogg Art Museum (Cambridge, MA, 1975)

Catalogue entry no. 567 by Max Loehr:

567 Cicada with Patches of Gold Foil
Biconvex piece of a highly polished, originally light bluish jade, now largely discolored and softened. The silhouette of the insect is slightly more compact and smooth than in the case of the two preceding specimens (Nos. 565, 566), and the wing tips are shortened. The corners of the wings are embellished with four triangular patches of gold foil. Probably Eastern Han.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Bequest of Grenville L. Winthrop
Accession Year
1943
Object Number
1943.50.274
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
Permissions

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Publication History

  • Max Loehr and Louisa G. Fitzgerald Huber, Ancient Chinese Jades from the Grenville L. Winthrop Collection in the Fogg Art Museum, Harvard University (Cambridge, MA, Fogg Art Museum, 1975)., cat. no. 567, p. 393
  • Jenny So, Early Chinese Jades in the Harvard Art Museums (Cambridge, MA, 2019), pp. 286-7, cat. 40A

Exhibition History

  • 32Q: 1740 Early China I, Harvard Art Museums, 11/16/2014 - 01/01/2050

Subjects and Contexts

  • Google Art Project

Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu