Object: Pendant in the form of a water buffalo, reworked S1987.479

Classification: Jewelry and Ornament

Historical period(s): 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: 2.5 x 3.8 x 0.6 cm (1 x 1 1/2 x 1/4 in)

Origin: China, probably Henan province, Anyang

Credit Line: Gift of Arthur M. Sackler

Collection: Arthur M. Sackler Collection

Accession Number: S1987.479

: 水牛形飾（二次加工）
晚商安陽時期（公元前1300-1050年）
中國，疑似河南安陽市
軟玉
高2.5、寬3.8、厚0.6釐米
亞瑟·M·賽克勒贈送
器物編號：S1987.479

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

From 1959 to 1963
Edna H. Bahr (d. 1978), United States and England, acquired by descent from her father, Abel William Bahr

From 1963 to 1987
Dr. Arthur M. Sackler, New York, purchased from Edna H. Bahr 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 #538: "Kneeling buffalo-relief Dec. Grey-Cinnabar," 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 objects was transferred to the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery on September 11, 1987.

Previous owner(s): Abel William Bahr (1877-1959)
Edna H. Bahr (1907-1986)
Dr. Arthur M. Sackler (1913-1987)

Description: Pendant, kneeling buffalo facing side; carved and pierced through front side of nose; opaque marbled greenish-gray and white. (Surface flaws, minor pitting, minor adhesions; tiny surface scratches.)

Curatorial Remarks

1. (Jeffrey Smith per Keith Wilson, July 17, 2008) Jewelry added as secondary classification.

2. (Susan Kitsoulis per Keith Wilson, June 23, 2010) Object name changed from "Pendant: water buffalo" to "Jewelry."
3. (Najiba Choudhury per Keith Wilson, September 20, 2019) Title changed from "Water Buffalo" to "Pendant in the form of a water buffalo, reworked"; Date changed from "ca. 1100-1000 BCE" to "ca. 1300-1050 BCE"; Period One changed from "Shang or Western Zhou dynasty" to "Late Shang dynasty"; Geography changed from "China" to "China, probably Henan province, Anyang"; and Medium changed from "Jade (nephrite)" to "Jade".

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 water buffalo, reworked

Related Objects

Web Resources