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A green cast bronze plaque that is oblong at the bottom and flat at the top. On top is a long, thin swirling shape with a small head at the center. There is negative space between the shapes and there are small turquoise inlays along the swirling shape.

A green cast bronze plaque that is oblong at the bottom and nearly flat at the top and shown flat on a grey background. On the surface is a long, thin swirling shape with a small head at the center. The head has two round eyes facing forward, two upward swirls, a flat snout, and two downward facing points. The swirling shape comes to a large circle shape at the top. There is negative space in between the shapes. The swirling shape is decorated with fine engraved lines and small turquoise inlays that come in the shapes of half moons and rectangles.

Gallery Text

Like their Shang predecessors, the Zhou produced sets of bronze ritual vessels for use in state rites and burial in tombs. In style, form, and function, the earliest bronze vessels from the Western Zhou period were virtually indistinguishable from those made by the Shang, for the Zhou sought to legitimize their ascension over their defeated rivals by closely replicating the tangible symbols of Shang power. Before long, however, traditional Shang decorative motifs such as the taotie animal mask began to evolve, and new forms emerged, such as the confronting dragons on the inscribed gui food vessel (far right) or the elephants on the covered you wine vessel (near left) displayed here. Inscriptions on these objects expanded, from single clan marks to longer memorializing inscriptions, signaling a shift in the function of bronze vessels from purely sacred objects belonging to powerful Shang clan members, to status symbols commemorating the accomplishments of Zhou kings and nobles.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
1943.52.41
Title
Openwork Plaque with Coiled Dragon (probably the front of a scabbard)
Classification
Weapons and Ammunition
Work Type
scabbard
Date
11th-8th century BCE
Places
Creation Place: East Asia, China
Period
Zhou dynasty, Western Zhou period, c. 1050-771 BCE
Culture
Chinese
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/204386

Location

Location
Level 1, Room 1600, Early Chinese Art, Arts of Ancient China from the Bronze Age to the Golden Age
View this object's location on our interactive map

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Bronze with turquoise inlay
Technique
Inlaid
Dimensions
H. 18.6 x W. 10.3 x D. 2.9 cm (7 5/16 x 4 1/16 x 1 1/8 in.)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
Grenville L. Winthrop, New York (by 1943), bequest; to Fogg Art Museum, 1943.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Bequest of Grenville L. Winthrop
Accession Year
1943
Object Number
1943.52.41
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
Permissions

THIS WORK MAY NOT BE LENT BY THE TERMS OF ITS ACQUISITION TO THE HARVARD ART MUSEUMS.

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Exhibition History

  • S427: Ancient Chinese Bronzes and Jades, Harvard University Art Museums, Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Cambridge, 10/20/1985 - 04/30/2008
  • Re-View: S228-230 Arts of Asia, Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Cambridge, 05/31/2008 - 06/01/2013
  • 32Q: 1600 Early China II, Harvard Art Museums, 11/16/2014 - 01/01/2050

Subjects and Contexts

  • Google Art Project

Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu