Small Jade Bird Figure | Harvard Art Museums

Identification and Creation

Object Number: 1943.50.226
Title: Small Jade Bird Figure
Classification: Ritual Implements
Work Type: pendant
Date: c. 11th cent. BCE - 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/204965

Physical Descriptions

Medium: Translucent olive-green nephrite, partily discolored by calcification
Dimensions: 1.8 x 3.3 x 0.4 cm (11/16 x 1 5/16 x 3/16 in.)
unspecified: 4 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. 267 by Max Loehr:

267 Small Bird Figure
Translucent olive-green jade, partly discolored by calcification. The outline of the bird has a lively rhythm and—because of the recurrence of analogous forms for the pointed beak, the claws, the tips of the wings and the flaring tail—a pronounced unity of form. The only incised lines are those separating the foot from the body and the wings from the tail. Perforation above the claws. Western Chou.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line

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

Accession Year

1943

Object Number

1943.50.226

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. 267, p. 198

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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