Primitive Jade Bird Silhouette | Harvard Art Museums

Identification and Creation

Object Number: 1943.50.209
Title: Primitive Jade Bird Silhouette
Classification: Ritual Implements
Work Type: ornament
Date: late 19th - early 20th century
Places: Creation Place: East Asia, China
Period: Qing dynasty, 1644-1911
Culture: Chinese
Persistent Link: https://hvrd.art/o/204915

Physical Descriptions

Medium: Translucent pale green nephrite
Dimensions: H. 6.2 x W. 4 x D. 0.3 cm (2 7/16 x 1 9/16 x 1/8 in.)
Weight 13 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. 599 by Max Loehr:

599 Primitive Bird Silhouette
The figure, which is primitive in so far as it lacks style, was fashioned from a fragment of a translucent pale green jade with several perforations and a sharpened edge. Though primitive and incomplete, the silhouette is not wanting in expressiveness. While the absence of stylistic properties precludes dating, it is possible that the fragment as such goes back to the Chou period.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line

Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Bequest of Grenville L. Winthrop

Accession Year

1943

Object Number

1943.50.209

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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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. 599, p. 415

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

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