Page 64 - China, 5000 years : innovation and transformation in the arts
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Fig. 8. Representative jade blades (zhang,) from apparent in the grooving and downward point of
(A) Erlitou and (B) Sanxingdui. Xia/Shang periods the blade's tip, as found on dagger-axes ofWestern
(ca. iSoo-ca. 1500 BCE). Zhou date excavated from Sanmenxia, Henan
Province, andTianma, Shanxi Province. 37 The major
—dagger-axes (ge) or broad axes (yue) continue to artistic innovation in the jade medium during the
Western Zhou period is seen in the rich assemblage
reflect the Xia taste for large-scale insignia. Jade of jade pieces creating a burial mask (cat. 12; fig. 10)
types that eventually replace the insignia are the flat and extended chest and body pectoral with
or round small figurines, designed more for additional, flanking jade insignia ot dagger-axes and
hi (fig. 10), excavated at Sanmenxia in 1990. 3S This
decorative than ritual purposes. The small animal
and human figures popular during the Shang are earliest ofjade face masks, dating to the ninth
represented in the exhibition by four pieces century bce, clearly anticipates the creation of a
excavated intact from the celebrated tomb
belonging to the Shang queen popularly referred to complete jade body suit by the Western Han period
as Fu Hao, 34 but correctly identified by the name
Fu Zi. 35 Three of the jades represent variations of (206 bce-8 ce) in provinces as far afield as Hebei,
Shandong, Guangdong, Jiangsu, and Hubei. 39
—the bird motif- one naturalistic version from the
Sanmenxia has long been known as a Western
side (cat. 10(3]), another with headdress and
human-like legs tucked in profile (cat. 10(4]), and a —Zhou cemetery site of the Guo state an
Athird bird with ram's horns (cat. io[l]). fourth enhefment that was probably of very early Western
small jade (cat. io[2]) of light translucent green Zhou date. 40 In the 1950s over two hundred tombs
represents a human whose hands rest on his knees were excavated at this site, and in the last fifteen
in servile attitude. All four jades have holes for years new finds, including tomb Number 2001, to
attachment and were probably worn suspended as which the jade mask (cat. 12; fig. 10) belongs, were
charms or decorative baubles. In the excavation reported. This burial find is of high interest for
report, jade figurines from this rich tomb amounted what it says about Western Zhou burial rites and
to over three hundred out of a total of six to seven ritual reform, which required sets of vessels and
hundred jades. 3° jades that by their number and quality were
designed to signify status. For example, tomb
JADE AS LIFE PRESERVATIVE AND ORNAMENT
Number 2001 included not only bronze sets of gni
The Western Zhou period (ca. 1100-771 bce) is
(grain), ding (meat), and li (steamer) vessels (six to
Arepresented here by two jade works. jade dagger- eight per set of identical form but different size),
but sets of chimes and bells, as well as other unusual
ax (ge\ cat. 11) from Xi'an, Shaanxi Province, is a art works such as an unprecedently early belt with
gold decorative attachments and an iron sword with
Western Zhou version of this weapon made jade fitting.
popular during the Shang period. The Zhou date is
JADE AS MATERIAL AND EPOCH 62
