Object: Pendant in the form of a fish S1987.477

Classification: Jewelry and Ornament

Historical period(s): Anyang period, Late Shang dynasty, ca. 1300-ca. 1050 BCE

Object Date: ca. 1300-ca. 1050 BCE

Medium: Jade (nephrite)

Dimension(s): H x W x D: 1.8 × 10.2 × 0.3 cm (11/16 × 4 × 1/8 in)

Origin: China, probably Henan province, Anyang

Credit Line: Gift of Arthur M. Sackler

Collection: Arthur M. Sackler Collection

Accession Number: S1987.477

: 魚形飾
晚商安陽時期（公元前1300-1050年）
中國，疑似河南安陽市
軟玉
高1.8、寬10.2、厚0.3釐米
亞瑟·M·賽克勒贈送
器物編號：S1987.477

Provenance: To 1959
Abel William Bahr (1877-1959), Shanghai, China, London, England, Montreal, Canada, New York, NY, and Ridgefield, Connecticut [1]

From 1963 to 1987
Dr. Arthur M. Sackler, New York, purchased from the Bahr Collection in 1963 [2]

From 1987
Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, gift of Dr. Arthur M. Sackler on September 11, 1987 [3]

Notes:

[1] According to information provided by the Arthur M. Sackler Foundation, October 9, 2009.

[2] See #182: "Grey-tan Mat surface. Straight body. Engraved fina. Flared tail...blue cloth box," on list provided by the Arthur M. Sackler Foundation, October 9, 2009, copy in object file.

[3] Pursuant to the agreement between Dr. Arthur M. Sackler and the Smithsonian Institution, dated July 28, 1982, legal title of the donated object was transferred to the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery on September 11, 1987.

Previous owner(s): Abel William Bahr (1877-1959)
Dr. Arthur M. Sackler (1913-1987)

Description: Fish pendant with straight body, incised fins, flared tail; pierced twice at head; marble gray-tan coloration. (Horizontal crack in tail; deposits.)

Past label text: 1. In Praise of Ancestors, September 28, 1987–January 5, 1989; by Thomas Lawton (shown with S1987.556, S1987.549, S1987.632, S1987.634, S1987.843, S1987.633, S1987.555, S1987.573, S1987.472, S1987.475, and S1987.461)

Fish Pendant (Yu Pei 魚珮)
11th century BCE
Shang 商–Western Zhou 周 dynasties
China
Jade

Curatorial Remarks

1. (Jeffrey Smith per Keith Wilson, July 1, 2008) Jewelry added as secondary classification.

2. (Susan Kitsoulis per Keith Wilson, June 23, 2010) Object name changed from "Pendant: fish" to "Jewelry." Title changed from "Pendant (yu pei 魚珮): fish" to "Pendant (pei 珮) in the form of a fish."

3. (Najiba Choudhury per Keith Wilson, May 4, 2018) Title changed from "Pendant (yu pei) in the form of a fish" to "Pendant in the form of a fish"; period one "Shang or Western Zhou dynasty" to "Late Shang dynasty"; period two added "Anyang period"; geography changed from "China" to "China, probably Henan province, Anyang"; date changed from "11th century BCE" to "ca. 1300-ca. 1050 BCE"; medium changed from "Jade" to "Jade (nephrite)"; dimensions changed from "H x W x D: 10.2 x 1.8 x 0.3 cm (4 x 11/16 x 1/8 in)" to "H x W x D: 1.8 × 10.2 × 0.3 cm (11/16 × 4 × 1/8 in)"; object name changed from "jewelry" to "Pendant"; added Chinese object caption by Jingmin Zhang; added the following to the description field, "Fish pendant with straight body, incised fins, flared tail; pierced twice at head; marble gray-tan coloration. (Horizontal crack in tail; deposits.)"; and added past label text by Thomas Lawton.

Published References

J. Keith Wilson, Jingmin Zhang. Jades for Life and Death. .

SI Usage Statement

Usage conditions apply

There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.

The information presented on this website may be revised and updated at any time as ongoing research progresses or as otherwise warranted. Pending any such revisions and updates, information on this site may be incomplete or inaccurate or may contain typographical errors. Neither the Smithsonian nor its regents, officers, employees, or agents make any representations about the accuracy, reliability, completeness, or timeliness of the information on the site. Use this site and the information provided on it subject to your own judgment. The National Museum of Asian Art welcomes information that would augment or clarify the ownership history of objects in their collections..

Save this image | Request Permission | Terms of use

Pendant in the form of a fish

Related Objects

Web Resources