CHINA, EARLY WESTERN ZHOU DYNASTY, CIRCA 10TH CENTURY BC

Details

A RARE IVORY-COLORED OPAQUE JADE 'HANDLE'-SHAPED FINIAL OR INSIGNIA
CHINA, EARLY WESTERN ZHOU DYNASTY, CIRCA 10TH CENTURY BC
The flat finial carved on each side with a bird standing on a coiled dragon below two bow-string bands, the stone now almost completely opaque from alteration, with satiny polish and traces of cinnabar
6 in. (15.2 cm.) long

Provenance

The Collection of Robert H. Ellsworth, New York, before 2000.

Special notice

This lot is offered without reserve.

Brought to you by

Gemma Sudlow

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ellsworth@christies.com 212 636 2000

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Lot Essay

The shape and carved decoration of this finial/insignia are similar to that of a 'handle'-shaped jade dated Western Zhou dynasty illustrated by Jessica Rawson in Chinese Jade from the Neolithic to the Qing, British Museum, 1995, pp. 235-36, no. 13:3, where another in the collection of the British Museum is also illustrated, p. 236, fig. 2. Both of these published examples exhibit opaque alteration.

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