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Identification and Creation

Object Number
1943.50.55
Title
Large Jade Dagger-Axe with Projecting Shoulders
Other Titles
Alternate Title: ko
Classification
Ritual Implements
Work Type
dagger-axe
Date
16th cent. BCE - 10th cent. BCE
Places
Creation Place: East Asia, China
Period
Shang dynasty (c. 1600-c. 1050 BCE) to Western Zhou period (c. 1050-771 BCE)
Culture
Chinese
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/204891

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Opaque stone, mottled bluish gray and whitish, with adherences of soil
Dimensions
41.8 x 10.4 x 1 cm (16 7/16 x 4 1/8 x 3/8 in.)
unspecified: 549 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. 54 by Max Loehr:

54 Large Dagger-Axe with Projecting Shoulders
Opaque stone, mottled bluish gray and whitish, with adherences of soil. Both the blade and its median crest are strongly curved, and the lower edge is noticeably concave. The blade slopes toward the edges; there are no clearly defined facets or bevels. The shoulders are marked by neatly carved out ridges, which jut out over the blade, reminiscent of the bronze ko. The tang is flattened; it, too, slopes toward the edges, and is perforated from the right face. Shang or Western Chou.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Bequest of Grenville L. Winthrop
Accession Year
1943
Object Number
1943.50.55
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
Permissions

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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, Fogg Art Museum (Cambridge, MA, 1975), cat. no. 54, p. 67
  • Jenny So, Early Chinese Jades in the Harvard Art Museums (Cambridge, MA, 2019), cat. no. 12A, pp. 122-25

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