Object: Dagger-axe (ge 戈), fragment reworked S1987.678

Classification: Ceremonial Object

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: 3.5 x 9.3 x 0.5 cm (1 3/8 x 3 11/16 x 3/16 in)

Origin: China, probably Henan province, Anyang

Credit Line: Gift of Arthur M. Sackler

Collection: Arthur M. Sackler Collection

Accession Number: S1987.678

: 戈（殘損后另加工）
晚商安陽時期（公元前1300-1050年）
中國，疑似河南安陽市
軟玉
高3.5、寬9.3、厚0.5釐米
亞瑟·M·賽克勒贈送
器物編號: S1987.678

Provenance: Mrs. Christian R. Holmes (1871-1941), New York and "The Chimneys," Sands Point, Port Washington, Long Island [1]

To 1959
Tonying and Company, New York, to November 25, 1959 [2]

From 1959 to 1987
Dr. Arthur M. Sackler (1913-1987), New York, purchased from Tonying and Company on November 25, 1959 [3]

From 1987
Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, gift of Dr. Arthur M. Sackler on September 11, 1987 [4]

Notes:

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

[2] See Tonying & Company’s invoice, issued to Arthur M. Sackler, dated November 25, 1959, in which the jade is listed under no. Jo 7: “Archaic jade Chang / Shang,” copy in object file, provided by Arthur M. Sackler Foundation, October 2009.

[3] See Tonying & Company’s invoice, citied in note 2.

[4] 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): Mrs. Christian R. Holmes (1871-1941)
Tonying and Company 通運公司 (established 1902)
Dr. Arthur M. Sackler (1913-1987)

Description: Blade, ridged, point one end; incised band with lozenges; pierced; notched end; opaque tan. (Almost completely calcified; patterned adherence sticky [from textile?].)

Past label text: 1. In Praise of Ancestors, September 28, 1987–January 5, 1989; by Thomas Lawton (shown with S1987.701 and S1987.712; additional jade forked blade, arrowhead, and ornament shown in same case)

Dagger-Axe (Ge)
12th–11th centuries BCE
Shang dynasty
China
Jade

2. Ancient Chinese Jades and Bronzes, October 1, 1989–September 10, 1990; by Thomas Lawton

Dagger-Axe (Ge)
Shang dynasty, ca. 1200–1050 BCE
China
Jade

Curatorial Remarks

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

2. (Susan Kitsoulis per Keith Wilson, June 29, 2010) Object name changed from "Dagger-axe (ge 戈)" to "Ceremonial object."

3. (Jeffrey Smith per Keith Wilson, May 1, 2012) Late Shang 商 dynasty, middle or late Anyang 安陽 period. Title changed to "Pendant in the form of a dagger-axe (ge 戈)."

4. (Najiba Choudhury per Keith Wilson, August 17, 2017) Title changed from "Pendant in the form of a dagger-axe (ge)" to "Dagger axe (ge 戈), fragment reworked"; changed period two from "middle or late Anyang period" to "Anyang period"; date changed from "ca. 12th-11th century BCE" to "ca. 1300-ca. 1050 BCE"; geography changed from "China" to "China, probably Henan province, Anyang"; medium changed from "Jade" to "Jade (nephrite)"; and dimensions changed from "H x W x D: 9.3 x 3.5 x 0.5 cm (3 11/16 x 1 3/8 x 3/16 in)" to "H x W x D: 3.5 x 9.3 x 0.5 cm (1 3/8 x 3 11/16 x 3/16 in)".

5. (Najiba Choudhury per Keith Wilson, February 7, 2019) Added Chinese translation by Jingmin Zhang; Changed title from "Dagger axe (ge 戈), fragment reworked" to "Dagger-axe (ge 戈), fragment reworked"; added the following to the description field, "Blade, ridged, point one end; incised band with lozenges; pierced; notched end; opaque tan. (Almost completely calcified; patterned adherence sticky [from textile?].)"; added label texts by Thomas Lawton from the exhibitions, In Praise of Ancestors, and Ancient Chinese Jades and Bronzes.

Published References

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

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Dagger-axe (ge 戈), fragment reworked

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