Lot 119
East Asia, China, Hongshan culture, ca. 4700 to 2900 BCE. A powerful and enigmatic nephrite jade scepter known as "the protector" or "wish-fulfilling jewel" from the Hongshan culture, its form merging authority with mythic symbolism. The tapering shaft is finely incised with swirling zoomorphic motifs: two are likely fenghuangs, the immortal birds of East Asian legend, while the other two appear to represent pig dragons (zhulong), one of the most iconic Hongshan jade forms. These creatures intertwine in rhythmic abstraction, their lines flowing across the polished surface to create a dynamic cosmological composition. At the top sits a carved anthropomorphic figure, seated with bent arms and folded hands resting upon an object placed between his legs. His deeply hollowed eyes pierce straight through the nasal bridge, and his striated teeth form a grim skeletal grin, giving him the haunting aspect of a skull or spirit-being. Size: 14.8" L x 1.8" W (37.6 cm x 4.6 cm)
While the drilled eyes may have been intended as suspension holes, the considerable weight of the object suggests that it was not worn as a pendant but instead held or displayed in ritual contexts.
Hongshan jade objects are among the earliest works of symbolic art in China, their forms reflecting both shamanic cosmology and emerging social hierarchies. This scepter, with its fusion of anthropomorphic and zoomorphic elements, embodies the culture's preoccupation with spiritual transformation, power, and the liminal boundary between life and death.
Provenance: private Missouri, USA collection, acquired from 1965 to 1970s
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#197224
- Condition: Weathering to surface as shown with a few nicks and abrasions in areas, commensurate with age. Otherwise, intact and excellent with liberal remaining detail and light earthen deposits in areas.
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