Head ornament

Detail of a pattern
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At A Glance

On View
  • Period

    ca. 3300-2250 BCE
  • Geography

    Lake Tai region, China
  • Material

    Jade (nephrite)
  • Dimension

    H x W x D: 2.9 × 5.8 × 0.6 cm (1 1/8 × 2 5/16 × 1/4 in)
  • Accession Number

    F1917.378d
  • EDAN ID

    edanmdm:fsg_F1917.378d

Object Details

  • Description

    Ornament; small thin plaque with slightly convex surface, rounded top, and straight base; mottled white and golden tan; satin smooth surface; reverse is slightly concave and covered with chalky white deposit; three small, two-holed conical perforations for attachment bored horizontally, at top, and each side. (Granular chipped areas.) One of a set; see F1917.378a, F1917.378b, and F1917.378c.
    Acquired with a box, now lost.
  • Provenance

    Purportedly found in Shaanxi [1]
    To 1917
    You Xiaoxi (late 19th–early 20th century), Shanghai, to 1917 [2]
    From 1917 to 1919
    Charles Lang Freer (1854–1919), purchased from You Xiaoxi, in New York, in 1917 [3]
    From 1920
    Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [4]
    Notes:
    [1] According to Curatorial Remark 1 in the object record.
    [2] See Original Miscellaneous List, S.I. 1318, p. 301, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives.
    [3] See note 2.
    [4] 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)
    Studies in Connoisseurship 1923-1983 (September 23, 1983 to March 1, 1984)
    Ancient Chinese Jade (September 4, 1980 to March 6, 1981)
    Untitled Exhibition, Chinese Metalwork (March 14, 1931 to March 22, 1943)
  • Previous custodian or owner

    You Xiaoxi 游篠溪 (late 19th-early 20th century) (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

    Jewelry and Ornament
  • On View

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

    CC0 - Creative Commons (CC0 1.0)

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