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An axe blade of carved, polished jade

The blade is a flat, vertical, rectangular shape that has sides that flares out toward the bottom, while the cutting edge at the bottom is rounded almost to a semi circle. In the center of the top third, a perfectly circular hole is cut, showing the thickness at that edge. The jade is a cream color with dark green flecks running in a diagonal grain. Running just below the top edge is a curved gouge, contrasting with the otherwise smooth, polished surface.

Gallery Text

In Neolithic China, nephrite and other beautiful stones were fashioned into nonfunctional ceremonial blades and ritual implements that were buried in the graves of important people. Many of the same types of jades, such as the diskshaped ritual implement known as a bi, were used during subsequent periods as well.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
1943.50.1
Title
Flat Jade Axe with Rounded Edge
Classification
Ritual Implements
Work Type
axe
Date
c. 3300 - c. 2000 BCE
Places
Creation Place: East Asia, China
Period
Neolithic period, Liangzhu culture, c. 3300-2200 BCE
Culture
Chinese
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/205094

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
Creamy white nephrite with dark green markings, polished to a brilliant gloss
Dimensions
H. 18.5 x W. 11.5 x Thickness 0.6 cm (7 5/16 x 4 1/2 x 1/4 in.)
Weight 257 g

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
Grenville L. Winthrop, New York (by 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. 13 by Max Loehr:

13 Flat Axe with Rounded Edge
Creamy white stone with dark green markings, polished to a brilliant gloss. The blade is slightly splayed, forming sharp points at either end of the curved cutting edge. The cutting edge is flawlessly designed and perfectly preserved. Slanting bore-hole, drilled from both sides. On both faces, at the level of the hole, run deep scars made by a swing saw when the slab was cut. The butt, again, shows a rough finish. Shang(?).

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Bequest of Grenville L. Winthrop
Accession Year
1943
Object Number
1943.50.1
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
Permissions

THIS WORK MAY NOT BE LENT BY THE TERMS OF ITS ACQUISITION TO THE HARVARD ART MUSEUMS.

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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. 13, p. 45
  • Jenny So, Early Chinese Jades in the Harvard Art Museums (Cambridge, MA, 2019), p. 80, fig. 4

Exhibition History

  • S427: Ancient Chinese Bronzes and Jades, Harvard University Art Museums, Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Cambridge, 10/20/1985 - 04/30/2008
  • Re-View: S228-230 Arts of Asia, Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Cambridge, 05/31/2008 - 06/01/2013
  • 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