Jade from Fu Hao's Tomb

 

 

 

Jade has had symbolic value in Chinese culture since very early times, and has been found in many eastern Neolithic tombs, including Dawenkou.  The process of shaping jade is both time and labor-intensive, leading Confucius (c. 500 B.C.) to compare the process to the cultivation of an educated person.  In addition to being a symbol of luxury and wealth, jade is associated with the qualities of purity and refinement and is often believed to possess magical powers.
 

The figure to the left is one of more than ten round or relief sculptures of human figures found in Fu Hao's tomb.  The person wears a long robe with a wide sash at the waist and has a short braid at the back of the neck.

What do you think of the pose of the figure?  What are some possibilities for the tail-like projection? 

SOME THOUGHTS:  The figure is in the formal seated pose current in China before the introduction of the chair.  Some have speculated that the figure is a performer in the midst of singing or chanting.  The tail-like projection may be an elaboration of the sash, or it may have something to do with the way the object was worn or used. 

Jade sculpture of a seated human figure      

Height: 7cm  

SOURCE:  Zhongguo meishu quanji, Diaosu bian, 1 (Beijing: Renmin meishu chubanshe, 1988), p. 26.

Many small jade ornaments in the shapes of animals were found in Fu Hao's tomb.  Below are several examples.  These combine an interest in three-dimensional form with an exploration of surface decoration.  It is not clear if these were ornaments or served some other function.  

The pendant below is ingeniously carved so that the weight of the sweeping tail allows the creature to be vertically suspended with the head up.  

This jade was probably several hundred years old when Lady Hao acquired it.  Members of the Shang elite often collected precious objects that had been transmitted from ancient times.

 

 

A jade pendant in the shape of a phoenix     

Length: 13.6cm, Thickness: 0.7cm         

SOURCE:  Zhongguo meishu quanji, Diaosu bian, 1 (Beijing: Renmin meishu chubanshe, 1988),  p. 53.

Here and below are several small jade images of animals.

How does the surface decoration compare with the decoration of bronze vessels from Fu Hao's tomb?

Jade tiger                               Height: 3.5cm, Length: 14.1cm

SOURCE:  Zhongguo meishu quanji, Diaosu bian, v. 1 (Beijing: Renmin meishu chubanshe, 1988), p. 51.
 

 

Can you tell from which part of its body the elephant might have been suspended?

ANSWER:  The final curl of its trunk is formed by a perforation from which it might have been suspended. 

Jade elephant                            Length: 6 cm    

SOURCE:  Zhongguo meishu quanji, Diaosu bian, v. 1 (Beijing: Renmin meishu chubanshe, 1988),  p. 51.

How do the two creatures below combine the real with the imaginary?  

Height: 5.5cm          

SOURCE:  Zhongguo meishu quanji, Diaosu bian, v. 1 (Beijing: Renmin meishu chubanshe, 1988), p. 54.

Height: 5.6cm, Length: 8.1cm

SOURCE:  Zhongguo meishu quanji, Diaosu bian, v. 1 (Beijing: Renmin meishu chubanshe, 1988), p. 52.

The jade pendant below is of a spread-winged hawk.  One side shows the breast and abdomen, the other the spine.  

Jade hawk                          Height: 6cm, Thickness: 0.2cm

SOURCE:  Zhongguo meishu quanji, Diaosu bian, 1 (Beijing: Renmin meishu chubanshe, 1988), p. 54.

Compare the style of this stone ox to the jade animals above.

How does the medium affect the style?  In what ways is it similar to or different from the jade animals?

Stone ox                                               Height: 1.4cm, Length: 25cm

SOURCE:  Zhongguo meishu quanji, Diaosu bian, 1 (Beijing: Renmin meishu chubanshe, 1988), p. 50.

Move on to the Zhou tomb of the Count of Yu