Disk (bi 璧)

Detail of a pattern
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Terms of Use

Creative Commons

At A Glance

On View
  • Period

    ca. 3300-2250 BCE
  • Geography

    Lake Tai region, China
  • Material

    Jade (nephrite)
  • Dimension

    Diam x D: 16.9 x 1.6 cm (6 5/8 x 5/8 in)
  • Accession Number

    F1914.66a-b
  • EDAN ID

    edanmdm:fsg_F1914.66a-b

Object Details

  • Description

    Perforated disk of the type pi [bi] 璧; bored from both sides; rich cream color with tan mottlings and an area at the rim on both sides of bright orange-brown; irregular in circumference and thickness. (Three rough areas on rim.)
  • Provenance

    To 1914
    Huang Zhonghui (circa 1870- after 1923), to 1914 [1]
    From 1914 to 1919
    Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Huang Zhonghui, in New York, in 1914 [2]
    From 1920
    Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]
    Notes:
    [1] See Original Miscellaneous List, pg. 151, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives.
    [2] See note 1.
    [3] The original deed of Charles Lang Freer's gift was signed in 1906. The collection was received in 1920 upon the completion of the Freer Gallery.
  • Collection

    Freer Gallery of Art Collection
  • Exhibition History

    Afterlife: Ancient Chinese Jades (October 14, 2017 - ongoing)
    Ancient Chinese Jades and Bronzes (November 20, 2010 to January 3, 2016)
  • Previous custodian or owner

    Huang Zhonghui 黃中慧 (ca. 1870-after 1923) (C.L. Freer source)
    Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919)
  • Origin

    Lake Tai region, China
  • Culture

    Liangzhu culture, ca. 3300-ca. 2250 BCE
  • Credit Line

    Gift of Charles Lang Freer
  • Type

    Ceremonial Object
  • On View

    Freer Gallery 19: Afterlife: Ancient Chinese Jades
  • Restrictions and Rights

    CC0 - Creative Commons (CC0 1.0)

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