Object: Pendant in the form of a stag S1987.564

Classification: Jewelry and Ornament

Historical period(s): Western Zhou dynasty, ca. 1050-ca. 850 BCE

Object Date: ca. 1050-ca. 850 BCE

Medium: Jade (nephrite)

Dimension(s): H x W x D: 4.1 x 4 x 0.4 cm (1 5/8 x 1 9/16 x 3/16 in)

Origin: China

Credit Line: Gift of Arthur M. Sackler

Collection: Arthur M. Sackler Collection

Accession Number: S1987.564

: 鹿形飾
西周（公元前1050-850年）
中國
軟玉
高4.1、寬4、厚0.4釐米
亞瑟·M·賽克勒贈送
器物編號：S1987.564

Provenance: By 1950 to 1953
C. T. Loo INC., New York, NY [1]

1953 to 1961
C. T. Loo Chinese Art, New York, NY by transfer from C. T. Loo, INC., NY [2]

1961 to 1964
Frank Caro Chinese Art, New York, NY, mode of acquisition unknown [3]

1964 to 1987
Arthur M. Sackler, New York, NY purchased in New York City from Frank Caro Chinese Art, New York, NY on August 27, 1964 [4]

From 1987
Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, gift of Dr. Arthur M. Sackler on September 11, 1987 [5]

Notes:

[1] Object published in C. T. Loo, INC. Chinese Archaic Jades, arranged for Norton Gallery of Art exh. cat. (Norton Gallery of Art, January 20 to March 1, 1950), plate 11, no. 3 (ill.)

[2] C. T. Loo formed C. T. Loo, INC. in 1948, when his company C. T. Loo & Company lost direct trade to China. On September 1, 1952, C. T. Loo’s associate, Frank Caro (1904-1980) took over daily operations of the New York business. C. T. Loo, INC. was dissolved by the summer of 1953 and Caro operated as C. T. Loo Chinese Art. Loo continued to play a large role in the business, as he and Caro struck a deal in which profits made on Loo’s stock would be evenly divided and Loo would maintain the lease and rental payments on the company’s gallery space.

[3] In 1961, Loo and Caro’s agreement ended. C. T. Loo & Cie., Paris, France took control of C. T. Loo Chinese Art, New York’s stock that C. T. Loo had added to the inventory before his death in 1957. Frank Caro then opened Frank Caro Chinese Art. Caro acquired pieces from Loo’s original stock (the mode of acquisition is unknown). See invoice from Frank Caro Chinese Art to Arthur M. Sackler, August 27, 1964, no. E 5704: “Jade deer (Jade Cat. Pl. 11 #3),” copy in object file.

[4] See note 3.

[5] 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): C.T. Loo, INC. (ca. 1948-no later than July 1953)
C.T. Loo Chinese Art (1953-1961)
Frank Caro Chinese Art (1962-1980)
Dr. Arthur M. Sackler (1913-1987)

Description: Deer plaque, profile with head turned back; opaque tan and brown/gray. (Many calcified areas; powdery, worn; both legs broken off; ear chipped; crack in center of body. Traces of cinnabar.)

Curatorial Remarks

1. (Jeffrey Smith per Keith Wilson, July 17, 2008) Jewelry added as secondary classification.
2. (Najiba Choudhury per Keith Wilson, October 10, 2019) Title changed from "Deer Plaque" to "Pendant in the form of a stag"; Date changed from "ca. 1100-1000 BCE" to "ca. 1050-850 BCE"; added Chinese Caption by Jingmin Zhang; and added the following to the Description field, "Deer plaque, profile with head turned back; opaque tan and brown/gray. (Many calcified areas; powdery, worn; both legs broken off; ear chipped; crack in center of body. Traces of cinnabar.)"
Object name changed from "Stag" to "Jewelry".

Published References

C.T. Loo & Company, (Introduction) Lindsay Hughes Cooper. An Exhibition of Archaic Chinese Jades. Exh. cat. New York. no. 3, pl. 11.
J. Keith Wilson, Jingmin Zhang. Jades for Life and Death. .

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