Catalogue entry no. 245 by Max Loehr:
245 Composite Sculpture of Human Bust, Birds, and T’ao-t’ieh Mask, Serving as a Finial
Polished, mottled gray-green jade. The center of this striking composite image is fashioned as the bust of a human being. The face shows small, incised eyes, smooth, raised eyebrows, a pouting mouth, and large, pierced ears. The head tapers on top, where there is a deep drill-hole. The figure has sloping shoulders and a rectangular jewel(?) at the throat. The hair, which appears only at the back, is evenly striated but terminates in a small curl. To the left and right at the back of the neck are rows of three widely spaced small dots in relief. Beneath them is carved out a large, round button with a circular depression at its center; its edge is partly fractured. Instead of arms the figure has two birds that face outward; they have long necks with scaly plumage, short crests, hammer-shaped beaks, disproportionately short wings, and animal-like claws. The same details appear at the back. Between the birds and covering the downward-protruding socket with its relatively wide opening is a t’ao-t’ieh mask with convolute horns and pointed ears. Lateral perforations pierce the socket wall from both sides, just below the level of the birds, and enable the finial to be fastened securely to a staff. Seen from the bottom, the object has the shape of a segment with the back forming the perimeter. Western Chou.
