Horn Scepter

Detail of a pattern
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Terms of Use

Creative Commons

At A Glance

  • Period

    1726
  • Geography

    China
  • Material

    Horn
  • Dimension

    H x W x D: 24.9 x 4.3 x 4.3 cm (9 13/16 x 1 11/16 x 1 11/16 in)
  • Accession Number

    F1918.49a-e
  • EDAN ID

    edanmdm:fsg_F1918.49a-e

Object Details

  • Artist

    Jin Nong (1687-1763)
  • Label

    This small scepter is carved to resemble a woody fungus known in Chinese as lingzhi ("sacred fungus"). The plant is also called the "fungus of immortality" because it was believed to be a powerful ingredient in elixirs intended to prolong human life. An inscription on the base contains a cyclical date and a sobriquet, or art name, used by the painter and antiquarian, Jin Nong (1687-1763). Thus it is likely that this horn object was made for (or possibly made by) Jin Nong.
  • Provenance

    To 1918
    You Xiaoxi (late 19th-early 20th century), Shanghai, to 1918 [1]
    From 1918 to 1919
    Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), given by You Xiaoxi in 1918 [2]
    From 1920
    Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]
    Notes:
    [1] See Original Miscellaneous List, S.I. 1374, 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

    Worshipping the Ancestors: Chinese Commemorative Portraits (June 17 to September 9, 2001)
    Beyond Paper: Chinese Calligraphy on Objects (August 18, 1994 to July 3, 1997)
    Chinese Art (May 9 to November 29, 1993)
  • Previous custodian or owner

    You Xiaoxi 游篠溪 (late 19th-early 20th century) (C.L. Freer source)
    Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919)
  • Origin

    China
  • Credit Line

    Gift of Charles Lang Freer
  • Type

    Sculpture
  • Restrictions and Rights

    CC0 - Creative Commons (CC0 1.0)

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