Finial in the form of a human with dragon

Object Details

• Description

  A human figure is presented in profile, with an overly large head and with arms bent at the elbow and with hands turning back to the shoulder. The legs, which are also bent, are treated in a summary fashion. Above the human head is a single-horned dragon, its body arching downward following the concave contour of the human figure. Curving projections and a tail lend the dragon a flamboyant appearance that contrasts with the compact abstraction of the human figure. Incised lines, some of them slanting, define the details of the dragon and the human figure. (Pencil marks [?] on edge; flaws on edges; few flaw cracks; cloudy; cinnabar adhering.)

• Provenance

  To 1959

  Abel William Bahr (1877-1959), Shanghai, China, London, England, Montreal, Canada, New York, NY, and Ridgefield, Connecticut [1]

  From 1959 to 1963

  Edna H. Bahr (d. 1978), by descent from her father, Abel William Bahr

  From 1963 to 1987

  Dr. Arthur M. Sackler, New York, purchased from Edna H. Bahr in 1963 [2]

  From 1987

  Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, gift of Dr. Arthur M. Sackler on September 11, 1987 [3]

  Notes:

  [1] According to information provided by the Arthur M. Sackler Foundation, October 9, 2009.

  [2] See #351:

  "Man with hip circle and Kuei," on list provided by the Arthur M. Sackler Foundation, October 9, 2009, copy in object file.

  [3] Pursuant to the agreement between Dr. Arthur M. Sackler and the Smithsonian Institution, dated July 28, 1982, legal title of the donated objects was transferred to the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery on September 11, 1987.

• Collection

  Arthur M. Sackler Collection

• Exhibition History

  The Arts of China (November 18, 1990 to September 7, 2014)

• Previous custodian or owner

  Abel William Bahr (1877-1959)

  Edna H. Bahr (died 1978)

  Dr. Arthur M. Sackler (1913-1987)

• Origin

  Anyang, probably Henan province, China

• Credit Line

  Gift of Arthur M. Sackler

• Type

  Jewelry and Ornament

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  BCE 1000s

• Name

  Sackler, Arthur M., Bahr, Abel William, Bahr, Edna H.

• Place

  China, Henan province, Anyang

• Topic

  Art, Chinese Art, Anyang period, Late Shang dynasty (ca. 1300 - 1050 BCE), Dragon

• Culture

  Chinese

• Object Type

  Ornaments, Jewelry