1943.50.556: Heavy Jade Disk with Three Dragons in Relief
SculptureIdentification and Creation
- Object Number
- 1943.50.556
- Title
- Heavy Jade Disk with Three Dragons in Relief
- Classification
- Sculpture
- Work Type
- sculpture
- Date
- 206 BCE - 220 CE (?)
- Places
- Creation Place: East Asia, China
- Period
- Han dynasty, 206 BCE-220 CE
- Culture
- Chinese
- Persistent Link
- https://hvrd.art/o/204536
Physical Descriptions
- Medium
- Pale greenish translucent nephrite with russet veins
- Dimensions
-
1.5 x 13.2 cm (9/16 x 5 3/16 in.)
unspecified: 382 g
Published Text
- Catalogue
- Ancient Chinese Jades from the Grenville L. Winthrop Collection in the Fogg Art Museum, Harvard University
- Authors
- Max Loehr and Louisa G. Fitzgerald Huber
- Publisher
- Fogg Art Museum (Cambridge, MA, 1975)
Catalogue entry no. 539 by Max Loehr:
539 Heavy Disk with Three Dragons in Relief
Pale greenish translucent jade with russet veins. On the upper side are carved out in high relief three dragon figures which move clockwise, filling the space like a wreath. They are differentiated individually: the longest of them has a twisted horn in the middle of his head; the second has instead a crest of wavy hair; while the smallest has neither horn nor hair, his ears are shaped differently, and his tail is twisted. Apparently the three are a family. The bodies of these dragons, elongated and sinuous, move energetically; their necks and heads are thrust back, their forelegs and hindlegs are alternately bent and stretched, while their long, bifurcated tails form sweeping, ornamental curves. The carver took pains to remove hard edges and sharp points. The reverse side, with beveled inner and outer margins, is covered with a grid of small, elevated dots and interlocked, incised lines; this pattern is executed with astonishing precision. Han.
Acquisition and Rights
- Credit Line
- Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Bequest of Grenville L. Winthrop
- Accession Year
- 1943
- Object Number
- 1943.50.556
- 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.
The Harvard Art Museums encourage the use of images found on this website for personal, noncommercial use, including educational and scholarly purposes. To request a higher resolution file of this image, please submit an online request.
Publication History
- Max Loehr and Louisa G. Fitzgerald Huber, Ancient Chinese Jades from the Grenville L. Winthrop Collection in the Fogg Art Museum, Harvard University (Cambridge, MA, Fogg Art Museum, 1975)., cat. no. 539, p. 376
- Jenny So, Early Chinese Jades in the Harvard Art Museums (Cambridge, MA, 2019), pp. 320-2, cat. 47A
Verification Level
This record was created from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator; it may be inaccurate or 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