? A SUPERB PALE CELADON JADE ‘BIRD’ PENDANT, NEOLITHIC PERIOD, HONGSHAN CULTURE Expert authentication: Dr. Gu Fang has examined the present lot and confirms its authenticity and the dating above, noting the style of cutting, workmanship, thickness and quality of stone with decomposed areas indicating burial all suggest a dating to the Hongshan culture. He assessed it as a piece of notably good quality. A signed and notarized copy of Dr. Gu's expertise, dated 2 February 2022, accompanies this lot.
Dr. Gu Fang (born 1962) is an internationally renowned scholar of Chinese art and a leading authority on jades. He graduated from the Department of Archaeology at the prestigious Beijing University in 1986 and later studied at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), where he now serves as a Senior Fellow specializing in archaeological excavations and Chinese jade research. A former visiting scholar at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, he has authored several books on Chinese jades, including the 15-volume The Complete Collection of Jades Unearthed in China (2007), one of the most comprehensive studies of its kind, as well as Chinese Jade: The Spiritual and Cultural Significance of Jade in China (2012).
China, c. 4700-2500 BC. Of flattened form, finely carved with protruding round eyes, proud chest, and incised claws, the outstretched wings subtly detailed with grooves and ridges simulating feathers. The reverse pierced with an aperture for suspension. The translucent stone of an attractive pale celadon color with icy white inclusions.
Provenance: From a private collection in New York, United States.
Condition: Very good condition, commensurate with age, with ancient wear and natural age-related imperfections, including small fissures, some of which have developed into hairlines. Occasional minute nicks and a small chip to the lower corner of the right wing, which have smoothened over time.
Weight: 70.1 cm
Dimensions: 6.8 cm
Jade was used not only for the production of ceremonial weapons and tools, as noted by Jessica Rawson, but was also carved by certain Neolithic communities into ornaments and small animal figures. Excavations in northeast China have revealed that the peoples of Liaoning Province, associated with what is now known as the Hongshan culture, crafted animal sculptures, such as this example, as well as various jade ornaments. The small and distinctive stone and jade carvings discovered near architectural remains and within tombs include remarkably naturalistic representations of turtles and birds, the great majority of which display an exceptional mastery of both material and carving techniques, their surfaces treated with extraordinary refinement and subtlety. See Jessica Rawson, The British Museum Book of Chinese Art, 1992, p. 44-83.
Expert's note: Compare this lot with a similar amulet dated to the Hongshan period located in the Ancient Chinese Jade Gallery of the Shanghai Museum (see image section). Both amulets fashioned of square form with spherical eyes and having grooved wings and tails.
Literature comparison:
Compare a related celadon jade pendant in the shape of a bird, China, Neolithic period, Hongshan culture, c. 3500 BC, 5.2 cm long, in the British Museum, registration number 1973,0726.116.
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Sotheby’s Paris, 10 June 2021, lot 90
Price: EUR 30,240 or approx. EUR 36,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A rare, large, and superbly carved celadon jade bird-shaped pendant Neolithic period, Hongshan culture
Expert remark: Compare the closely related form, manner of carving, and color of the stone. Note the similar size (7.5 cm).
Auction result comparison:
Type: Closely related
Auction: Sotheby’s New York, 19 May 2019, lot 144
Price: USD 32,500 or approx. EUR 35,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A green jade bird-form amulet, Neolithic period, Hongshan culture
Expert remark: Compare the closely related form and manner of carving. Note the smaller size (3 cm).
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