The Falk Collection of Early Chinese Art Well before I met Pauline Falk at the Freer and Sackler galleries of the Smithsonian Institution, where I was curator of the ancient Chinese collections from 1990 to 2000, I was already intrigued by the Falks' collection of early Chinese art. Although I never had the opportunity to meet Myron (Johnny) Falk, I can see from their collection that both Johnny and Pauline Falk seem to have had a unique perspective on the art of ancient China. In an era when major museums and collectors around the country were acquiring imposing bronze ritual vessels, late Neolithic painted pottery and earthenware funerary figures as representative Chinese artifacts from the fourth millennium BC to the early centuries AD, the Falks seemed instead to have been captivated by a wide range of less conspicuous jades and bronze objects (popularly called "small bronzes"). Like every serious collector of the time, the Falks traveled to China early in their collecting careers. There they bought three bronze ritual vessels from a dealer in Beijing in 1937. In the next thirty or more years, they made only three more such purchases. But even within such a narrow range of samples, the Falks managed to select the classic shapes and designs of each period in the gu (165), jue (164), ding (166), gui (167) and bell (168) and were able to acquire three closely matching pairs of vessels (165 and 164). In particular, the bronze bell (168) emits two crystal clear tones a major third apart when struck on different locations at the mouth, a musical feature of such bells not fully appreciated until graduated chimes were excavated and studied in the last twenty years.(1) However, the bulk of the Falks' purchases consisted of a wide variety of unusual, smaller bronze paraphernalia. Among these, several pieces stand out because they illustrate the important role played by the artistic traditions of China's ancient neighbors, an area that has only recently been understood through rich finds and excavations in north China. The goat-head knife (174), the ritual implement with alligator handle (173), and the scabbard ornament with intertwining serpents in openwork (177) are all recognized today as signature artifacts of the hunters and herders who lived along the vast northern territory that bordered both sides of the Great Wall in north China.(2) The Falks purchased these "small bronzes" from New York dealers throughout their collecting careers and must have intuitively recognized that they represent an unusual (but, at their time, little- known) aspect of ancient China's Bronze Age culture distinct from that presented by the more formal and imposing ritual vessels. Perhaps most tantalizing is their selection of the bronze zither tuning key surmounted by two monkeys (182). Since the musical function of these peculiar objects was only recently revealed to us through their recovery in undisturbed archaeological contexts, it would be unlikely that the Falks were aware of their musical and cultural implications.(3) They might have been attracted to its simple realism, and may or may not have realized that the monkeys are depicted in courtship, with the female coyly pushing away the more overt advances of an already aroused male. Today, we know that small bronze fittings and accessories showing animals in various stages of copulation are typically associated with hunters who lived in northeast China during the late first millennium BC(4). Fertility and procreation among animal life were of necessity important considerations for hunters who depended on the animals for their livelihood. Two other objects in the Falk collection illustrate another important impact of northern tribes on Bronze Age Chinese culture: the introduction of wheeled transport and accompanying harnessing techniques during the late second millennium BC(5). The harness fitting (a horse's bit?) with two human faces (175) and the extraordinarily well-preserved set of harness ornaments for a horse (176) point to the mysterious power of a herder's or warrior's mount and the ceremonial status attached to this exotic form of transport when it was adopted by China's settled aristocracy along the Yellow River basin. Just as the Falks' collection of bronze fittings and implements seems unconventional in their northern bias, their archaic jades highlight a similar recognition of the unusual and rare in this most conservative of Chinese art forms. A similar inclination toward the sculptural and representational is evident in their selection of archaic jades. We know very little about three-dimensional sculpture in stone or jade in ancient China because very little has survived.(6) With the excavation of several late Neolithic burials of the Hongshan culture (circa 3500-3000 BC) in modern northeast Inner Mongolia and southwest Liaoning province in the late 1980's, we encounter some of the earliest examples of sculptural jade, stone and earthen artifacts hitherto unknown to us.(7) Among the Falks' collection of archaic jades is a yellowish-green jade pendant in the shape of an insect pupa, often mistakenly identified as a cicada (194). Made from a thickly cylindrical piece of jade, this pendant displays all the typical features of jades associated with the Hongshan culture in northeast China. As a status symbol for its Neolithic owner, its power resides in its generous size, bold representation and choice of material. Defined by an uncompromisingly simple silhouette, a barely visible series of ridges and eyes, and a subtle sheen, the pupa-shape is visually forceful and irresistibly tactile. The Falks acquired this pendant in the late 1960s, almost twenty years before the excavation of the Hongshan graves and their jades and the inevitable flood of dubious imitations that quickly followed. Other jades acquired by the Falks continue this sculptural theme. The large streaked marble bear, a family bequest, is a rare but typical example of the powerful and blocky sculptural style of the late second millennium BC (Family bequest). Another is a generously thick, olive-green figure of a bird (Lot 195) that suggests comparisons with the best bird-shaped jades excavated from late Shang or early Western Zhou burials in recent years.(8) In contrast to these uncommon sculptural examples, the Falks also collected classic two-dimensional shapes arc, dragon, and fish-shaped plaques in a wide range of sizes (209 and 207). It is particularly remarkable that several examples have been acquired in pairs: two slender fish pendants (201), two arc-shaped pendants (Lot 204) and two large sinuous dragon pendants (205), each pair made at the same time from the same block of jade, with only minor differences in size or surface design. Excavation of tombs of Western Zhou dukes since 1990 revealed to us graphically how some of these pendants were worn (fig. ? [line drawing from Wenwu 1995, no. 7, p. 10]). Although the Falks' sets did not come with archaeological information, the fact that they have been kept together has allowed us to visualize something of their original impact with the aid of the excavated counterparts. Continued refinement of our connoisseurship in post-Han jades has enabled us to recognize archaistic examples like the pendant based on an archer's thumb ring (?). Published since the late 1950s as a paragon of Han jade design, it was first recognized as a possible archaism in the late 1980's. Now, with even greater exposure to excavated examples of Han date, we become increasingly convinced that the pendant is likely to have been made at a much later date than previously believed. A few Tang and Song objects in the Falks' collection stand out in quality and rarity. One of these is the pair of gilt-silver phoenixes with finely chased surface designs preserved in near-perfect condition (189). Just as elegant and fabulous, a large ornately plumed bird (211) shaped from a generous piece of gray-green jade might be considered the three-dimensional counterpart of the phoenixes. In contrast, two small bird sculptures 'a hen (212), mandarin ducks (213)' display an irresistible charm in their simplicity and directness. The unusual gilt copper vase (191) may not possess a comparable level of refinement as its ceramic prototypes, but it is a rare illustration of the relative states of the two industries during the Song dynasty and commands a meaningful place among the Falks' collection of Song ceramics.(9) At a time when the acquisition of archaeological antiquities is fraught with questions of forgeries, ethics and ownership, it is particularly heartening to see a collection in which such questions do not arise. The sharing of the Falk collection at this time presents an ideal opportunity for us to reassess each piece with new information obtained from recent excavations and research. In the process, our appreciation and understanding of many of them will have deepened. Examples previously slighted, ignored or misunderstood might take on new meaning and significance. Others might undergo positive or negative adjustments. It is only through such open-minded review that we enrich our appreciation and ensure the continued survival of interest in China's ancient artistic traditions. Jenny F. So Notes: 1 For the latest discussion of two-toned chime bells from Bronze Age China, see Robert Bagley, "Percussion," in Jenny F. So, ed., Music in the Age of Confucius (Washington, D.C.: Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, 2000). 2 See Jenny F. So and Emma C. Bunker, Traders and Raiders on China's Northern Frontier (Washington, D.C., and Seattle: Arthur M. Sackler Gallery and University of Washington Press, 1995); also Emma C. Bunker, Ancient Bronzes of the Eastern Eurasian Steppes from the Arthur M. Sackler Collections (New York: Arthur M. Sackler Foundation and Harry N., Abrams, 1997). 3 See discussion in So and Bunker (1995), nos. 70-71; also Bo Lawergren, "Strings," in Jenny F. So, ed., Music in the Age of Confucius; and Jenny F. So, "Different Tunes, Different Strings: Court and Chamber Music in Ancient China (Orientations, May 2000), pp. 26,34. 4 The theme of copulating animals is discussed in Bunker (1997), nos. 71,73. 5 See So and Bunker (1995), pp. 26,27, 43,44. 6 For discussions of jade animal sculpture, see Jessica Rawson, Chinese Jade from the Neolithic to the Qing (London: The British Museum, 1995), pp. 205,209; Jenny F. So, "The Functions of Jade Animal Sculptures in Ancient China" in Chinese Jade Animals (Hong Kong: Hong Kong Museum of Art, 1996), pp. 27,32. 7 Finds of the late Neolithic Hongshan culture in northeast China are summarized in Jessica Rawson, pp. 30,32, 113,118. 8 Selected examples of the latest Western Zhou finds are illustrated in Gems of China's Cultural Relics (Beijing: Wenwu Press, 1997), nos. 28,32; and in Wenwu 1994, no. 8, inside front cover, back cover, and pp. 32,33. 9 A wide range of comparable Han examples from excavated contexts is published in Zhongguo yuqi quanji, vol. 4 (Shijiazhuang: Hebei meishu chubanshe, 1993). EARLY METALWORK

A Rare Pair of Bronze Wine Vessels, Jue

LATE SHANG DYNASTY, LATE ANYANG PERIOD, 12TH-11TH CENTURY BC

Details

A Rare Pair of Bronze Wine Vessels, Jue
Late Shang dynasty, late Anyang period, 12th-11th century BC
Each deep U-shaped body raised on three blade-form supports and finely cast in low relief with a central band decorated with two taotie masks, one centered on one of the three notched vertical flanges, the other on a pictograph cast beneath the curved handle surmounted by a buffalo head, all reserved on a leiwen ground below leiwen-decorated blades rising towards the rim from which rise two capped posts, with mottled pale green patina and some encrustation
8in. (20.2cm.) high
Falk Collection no. 521. (2)

Provenance

Alice Boney, New York, 1958.

Lot Essay

The two-character pictograph under the handle consists of the character zi, 'child', over a clan sign consisting of a spear flanked by two sets of flames.
Compare the similar jue illustrated by R.W. Bagley, Shang Ritual Bronzes in the Arthur M. Sackler Collections, Arthur M. Sackler Foundation, Washington DC, 1987, p. 195, no. 18. The style of casting of the main elements is very similar, as is the shape, although the flanges on the Falk jue project further. In his entry for the jue, Bagley states that the shape and decoration indicate that they date later than Fu Hao's tomb, that is, after about 1200 BC. In the same volume, Bagley illustrates two other jue, p. 251, figs. 36.1 (in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, no. 46.396) and 36.3. Both vessels are inscribed with the character zi, followed by a clan sign consisting of four footprints around a square. The latter two are also very similar to the Falk example, both in profile and in the relief casting of the leiwen ground.

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