A jade sculpture of a silhouette of a fish that is long and thin in shape. There are engraved lines to show details of fins, a circle for an eye, and a hole through the nose.
Photo © President and Fellows of Harvard College
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Photo © President and Fellows of Harvard College

The jade sculpture is of a silhouette of a fish and is flat, long, and thin in shape. It is dark green and yellow-green in color and shown horizontally. The left-side end is angled and pointed to look like a fin. The middle area has carved lines to show top and bottom fins. The right-side end has a small circle engraved to show an eye and the nose is small and hammer-shaped with a small hole through it.

Gallery Text

In the Zhou dynasty the number of jades in burial sites increased significantly, as multiple plaques and beads were sewn or strung together and draped over the face and body of the deceased. Jades in the forms of figures and animals became increasingly realistic, and surface patterns became more complex and highly decorative.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
1943.50.165
Title
Elongated Jade Fish Silhouette
Classification
Ritual Implements
Work Type
pendant
Date
c. 1100-771 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/204921

Location

Location
Level 1, Room 1740, Early Chinese Art, Arts of Ancient China from the Neolithic to the Bronze Age
View this object's location on our interactive map

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Clouded bluish gray-green, faintly translucent nephrite
Dimensions
W. 1.1 x L. 10.2 x Thickness 0.3 cm (7/16 x 4 x 1/8 in.)
Weight 6 g

Provenance

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

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. 278 by Max Loehr:

278 Elongated Fish Silhouette
Clouded bluish gray-green, faintly translucent jade. Straight, slender shape with slanting, slightly flaring tail. Perforation at the mouth. Western Chou.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Bequest of Grenville L. Winthrop
Accession Year
1943
Object Number
1943.50.165
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 (Cambridge, MA, Fogg Art Museum, 1975)., cat. no. 278, p. 201

Exhibition History

  • 32Q: 1740 Early China I, Harvard Art Museums, 11/16/2014 - 01/01/2050

Subjects and Contexts

  • Google Art Project

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