Lot Essay
A possible Longshan date for this piece has been suggested by Hayashi Minao, see Wu Hung, "Tradition and Innovation". While bracelets of this shape first emerged in the Neolithic era, the form became more popular in the Shang period. Nine similar but thinner jade bracelets were discovered in Fu Hao's tomb (c.1200 B.C.), see Yinxu Fu Hao Mu, 1980.
A wider jade bracelet dated to the late Neolithic-Shang period with two evenly raised ridges is illustrated by Rawson, Chinese Jade, no. 6:5. The author states that the ridges can be compared to other bracelets thought to come from east-coast neolithic cultures, and may possibly have earlier precedents in the Hongshan culture.
Rawson also points out that a large number of jades found in Fu Hao's tomb predated Fu Hao's era.
A wider jade bracelet dated to the late Neolithic-Shang period with two evenly raised ridges is illustrated by Rawson, Chinese Jade, no. 6:5. The author states that the ridges can be compared to other bracelets thought to come from east-coast neolithic cultures, and may possibly have earlier precedents in the Hongshan culture.
Rawson also points out that a large number of jades found in Fu Hao's tomb predated Fu Hao's era.