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A YELLOW AND RUSSET JADE neolithic cultures produced bi, in particular Museum of Art, San Antonio, 2011; and a larger
DISC (BI) the Liangzhu culture, which ourished in disc of similar stone quality sold in these rooms
NEOLITHIC PERIOD, 3RD / 2ND southeastern China in the 3rd millennium B.C. 17 September, 2003, lot 24, attributed to the
MILLENNIUM B.C. Jade discs similar to the present example were Neolithic period, 3rd/2nd millennium B.C.
recovered from sites of the Liangzhu culture in
the circular disc with at sides, pierced with present-day southeastern China. See Jessica $ 6,000-8,000
a central aperture, of a softly polished stone Rawson, Chinese Jade. From the Neolithic to the
slightly irregular in thickness and mottled with Qing, London, 1995, pp. 130-136 and pp. 156-157.
olive-green, ochre, yellow, and russet tones with
feathery veining, with a patch of opaque dark The present disc is made of a dark, translucent Roman Vishniac 1897 1990
brown to the edge jade, and appears similar in stone quality, size,
Diameter 4¾ in., 12 cm and thickness to a bi illustrated in Shu-P’ing Teng,
Neolithic Jades in the Collection of the National
PROVENANCE Palace Museum, Taipei, 1992, pl. 47. Consider as
well another disc of similar size, slightly thicker,
Collection of Roman Vishniac (1897-1990). and of a similar stone in the National Museum of
History, Taiwan, attributed to the Late Neolithic
Bi make up one of the major forms of archaic period, c. 2000, illustrated in John Johnston
jades and were made in a range of sizes. They and Chan Lai Pik, 5000 Years of Chinese Jade :
appear to have originated in China during the Featuring Selections from the National Museum of
Neolithic period among the peoples of eastern History, Taiwan and the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery,
China for whom beautifully nished discs were a Smithsonian Institution, Exhibition, San Antonio
major component of the jade repertoire. Various
