Object: Cup with handles and raised linked curls S1987.645

Classification: Vessel

Historical period(s): Warring States period, Eastern Zhou dynasty, 475-221 BCE

Object Date: 475-221 BCE

Medium: Jade (nephrite)

Dimension(s): H x W x D: 3 x 9.9 x 8.1 cm (1 3/16 x 3 7/8 x 3 3/16 in)

Origin: China, Henan province, Jincun

Credit Line: Gift of Arthur M. Sackler

Collection: Arthur M. Sackler Collection

Accession Number: S1987.645

: 凸面連體谷紋玉耳杯
東周戰國時期（公元前475--221年）
中國，疑似河南金村出土
軟玉
高3、寬9.9、厚8.1釐米
亞瑟·M·賽克勒贈送
器物編號：S1987.645

Provenance: By 1939 to 1948
C. T. Loo & Company, New York, NY [1]

1948 to 1953
C. T. Loo, INC., New York, NY by transfer from C. T. Loo & Company, NY [2]

1953 to 1961
C. T. Loo Chinese Art, New York, NY by transfer from C. T. Loo, INC., NY [3]

1961 to 1964
Frank Caro Chinese Art, New York, NY, mode of acquisition unknown [4]

From 1964 to 1987
Dr. Arthur M. Sackler, New York, purchased from Frank Caro Chinese Art on August 27, 1964 in New York City [5]

From 1987
Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, gift of Dr. Arthur M. Sackler on September 11, 1987 [6]

Notes:

[1] In 1939, C. T. Loo & Company, New York lent the object to the Arden Gallery; see 3000 Years of Chinese Jade exh. cat. (New York: Arden Gallery, January 10 – February 11, 1939) no. 183 (ill.).

[2] When C. T. Loo & Company lost access to direct trade with mainland China in 1948, C. T. Loo closed the company and began C. T. Loo, INC. He dissolved the company in 1953. C. T. Loo, INC.’s ownership is also indicated in “Chinese Archaic Jades,” The Norton Gallery, West Palm Beach, Florida (1950), Plate XXXVII, no. 1.

[3] 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. Frank Caro Chinese Art stock no. D-6294: "Jade coupe (Jade Cat. Pl. 37 #1) Arden Cat. #183 (Red Cat. #245),” see invoice from Frank Caro Chinese Art to Arthur M. Sackler, August 27, 1964, copy in the object file.

[4] 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). Frank Caro, C. T. Loo’s associate, acquired C. T. Loo’s remaining stock after liquidation of C. T. Loo & Co. in 1952. Caro took control on September 1, 1952 and rebranded the company as C. T. Loo Chinese Art and later as Frank Caro Chinese Art.

[5] See invoice cited in note 2.

[6] 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 & Company (1914-1948)
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)

Past label text: 1. (In Praise of Ancestors, September 28, 1987–January 5, 1989; by Thomas Lawton (shown with S1987.463, S1987.657, and S1987.625))

Oval cups of this type, known as yusheng 羽觴, were made in lacquer, bronze, pottery, and mother of pearl as early as the Warring States (480–221 BCE) and Han 漢 (206 BCE–220 CE) periods. Jade examples are extremely rare.

Curatorial Remarks

1. (Thomas Lawton, 1987) Exhibition In Praise of Ancestors label text; moved to label field.
2. (Kelly Welch, December 1, 1995) Format changed from "oval cup" to "cup" per request of Jenny F. So.
3. (Jeffrey Smith per Keith Wilson, July 1, 2008) Vessel added as secondary classification.
4. (Stephen Allee, March 25, 2009) Jenny F. So, Jade Project Database, gives Period One as "Eastern Zhou 周," Date as "771--221 BCE" and Title as "Jincun 金村 ear cup"; but as per Keith Wilson, current Period One "Eastern Zhou 周 to Western Han 漢 dynasty" is changed to "Late Eastern Zhou 周 dynasty," current Date "3rd--2nd centuries BCE" is changed to "4th--3rd century BCE," and current Title is changed from "Oval cup (yusheng 羽觴)" to "Oval cup with handles and scrolls," while Object Name "Cup" is changed to "Vessel," "Warring States period" is added to Period Two, and "Jincun 金村, Henan 河南 province" is added to Geographical Origin. Changed Medium "Jade" to "Jade (?)," as no scientific analysis is recorded. Confirmed Measurements (H x W x D: 3.00 x 9.93 x 8.10), as per Christine Lee, Jade Project Database. Also added Previous Publications (5 items), as per Jenny F. So, Jade Project Database.
5. (Rebecca Merritt, January 28, 2014) Transferred from Published References:
3000 Years of Chinese Jade (New York: Arden Gallery, 1939), no. 183
Umehara Sueji 梅原末治, Shina kogyoku zuroku 支那古玉圖錄: Selected Specimens of Chinese Archaic Jade (Kyoto: Kuwana bunseidō, 1955), pl. 60:1.
6. (Najiba Choudhury per Matthew Clarke, December 14, 2021) Medium changed from "Jade (?)" to "Jade (nephrite)".
7. (Najiba Choudhury per Keith Wilson, February 26, 2024) Title changed from "Oval cup with handles and scrolls" to "Cup with handles and raised linked curls"; Object Name changed from "Vessel" to "Cup"; Period One changed from "Late Eastern Zhou dynasty" to "Eastern Zhou dynasty"; Date changed from "4th-3rd century BCE" to "475-221 BCE"; and added Chinese caption by Jingmin Zhang.

Published References

Thomas Lawton. Publication title unknown. cat. 104.
Exhibition of Chinese Arts, Special Sale. Exh. cat. New York, 1941-1942. no. 245.
Alfred Salmony. 3000 Years of Chinese Jade. Exh. cat. New York, January 10 - February 1, 1939. no.183, p. 76.
et al. Asian Art in the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery: The Inaugural Gift. Washington, 1987. cat. 65, p. 109.
C.T. Loo & Company, (Introduction) Lindsay Hughes Cooper. An Exhibition of Archaic Chinese Jades. Exh. cat. New York. pl. 37, no. 1.
Umehara Sueji. "支那古玉圖錄." Shina kogyoku zuroku [Selected Specimens of Chinese Archaic Jade]. Kyoto, 1955. Plate LX, no. 1.

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

Cup with handles and raised linked curls

Related Objects

Web Resources