Beschreibung:

A STUNNING BI DISC IN GREEN AND BROWN JADE WITH A GLASSY POLISH DECORATED WITH HEXAGONS AND MASKS Katalognummer: JAK0318-054 Jade China Han dynasty, 2nd – 1st century BC 蒲獸面紋玉璧 - 漢代, 公元前2世紀-前1世紀 DIAMETER 17.7 CM - HOLE 4.5 CM 直径 17.7 厘米 - 孔徑 4.5 厘米 This bi is a magnificent example of the type of funerary discs that, during the Han dynasty, were placed around the body or on/in the coffin to protect the deceased. These discs, often carved from a variety of green jade with a glassy feeling, have a standardized decoration exemplified by the one presented here. The inner area is decorated with a pattern of sketched hexagons embellished with small spirals incised on top, while the external band is filled with four animal masks in frontal view: the two areas are separated by a narrow strip carved with the so-called “twisted-rope” motif (see the jade ring no.36 in this auction). The animal faces have staring eyes, large horns and snouts with long whiskers: two large bands, crossed by wing-like patterns, spring from the heads, extend down on both sides and curl up at the ends. The light green jade is extremely rich in iron: this explains the predominant brown colour of the disc and the dramatic contrast between the still translucent green area and the darker zones of the highly polished jade. Compare a similar disc in the Harvard Art Museums’ collection (accession number 1943.50.549) with spirals incised over the hexagons, described in M. Loehr and L.G. Fitzgerald Huber, Ancient Chinese jades from the Grenville L. Winthrop collection in the Fogg Art Museum, Cambridge 1975, no.533. A second similar disc in the Sir Joseph Hotung collection is illustrated in J. Rawson, Chinese Jades from the Neolithic to the Qing, London 1995, no.15:4. In the same publication, see also an Eastern Zhou disc carved from a similar type of jade of pale green colour with extensive areas of brown (no.15:2). Startpreis 起始價: € 2.800 Schätzpreis 估計/估算: € 5.600 Expertise: Prof. Filippo Salviati From a Luxembourg collection All jades in this catalogue have been professionally examined, authenticated and described by Prof. Filippo Salviati. Professor Salviati teaches Chinese and Korean art at Sapienza University in Rome, in the Italian Institute of Oriental Studies. He is a world expert on archaic Chinese jades, having released multiple publications and being cited by renowned auction houses such as Sotheby’s. The microscopic images made available here, show that the weathering of the jade has occurred over a long period of time. Furthermore in the magnification one can reconstruct the workings of the jade. The two aforementioned criteria are exactly what counts in the authentication of archaic jades – the difficult and elaborate workmanship by hand and the subsequent weathering of the jade over centuries. The microscopic enlargements show how the patterns were ground out in many small steps, sometimes over months, and that the weathering actually occurs above the carvings, meaning it occurred after the jade was completed.