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Identification and Creation

Object Number
1943.50.52
Title
Biconvex Jade Knife
Classification
Ritual Implements
Work Type
knife
Date
Longshan culture (?), c. 2500 BCE - c. 2000 BCE
Places
Creation Place: East Asia, China
Period
Neolithic period
Culture
Chinese
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/205256

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Gray-green nephrite with light and dark brown cloud-like markings
Dimensions
34.2 x 5 x 0.7 cm (13 7/16 x 1 15/16 x 1/4 in.)
weight: 198 g

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. 216 by Max Loehr:

216 Biconvex Knife
Gray-green stone with light and dark brown cloud-like markings, comparable to the material seen in Nos. 195, 212, 214, and 215. Both the back, which is nearly straight, and the straight cutting edge are sharpened. The right end of the back is recessed, somewhat reminiscent of the cutout in Nos. 211 and 212, but the contour trails off in a haphazard curve. There are two conical perforations along the back; a third perforation, beneath the step where the blade narrows, is drilled from the opposite face. Early Western Chou(?).

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Bequest of Grenville L. Winthrop
Accession Year
1943
Object Number
1943.50.52
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. 216, p. 168

Verification Level

This record was created from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator; it may be inaccurate or 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