Object: Pendant in the form of a water bird S1987.862

Classification: Jewelry and Ornament

Historical period(s): Western Zhou dynasty, ca. 1050-ca. 950 BCE

Object Date: ca. 1050-ca. 950 BCE

Medium: Jade (nephrite)

Dimension(s): H x W x D: 6 x 6.2 x 0.8 cm (2 3/8 x 2 7/16 x 5/16 in)

Origin: China

Credit Line: Gift of Arthur M. Sackler

Collection: Arthur M. Sackler Collection

Accession Number: S1987.862

: 水鳥形飾
西周（公元前1050-950年）
中國
軟玉
高6、寬6.2、厚0.8釐米
亞瑟·M·賽克勒贈送
器物編號：S1987.862

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 #426: "Long necked bird Cream," 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: Fashioned of tan-colored, highly polished jade, the bird is presented in profile. The crested head atop a long, slender neck lends the bird an elegance that is echoed in the beveled lines of the wings and tail. Stylized projections on the tail and beneath the wings provide stabilizing elements for the overall composition. There is a circular perforation through the bird’s chest. (Calcified; chip/beak in front foot; some pitting; imperfections; rough spot on neck front; cinnabar adhering.)

Past label text: 1. (In Praise of Ancestors, September 28, 1987–January 5, 1989; by Thomas Lawton (shown with S1987.590, S1987.580, S1987.704, S1987.560, S1987.547, S1987.846, S1987.620, S1987.536, S1987.870, S1987.531, S1987.530, S1987.679, S1987.623, S1987.863, S1987.525, S1987.873, S1987.872, S1987.869, and S1987.544; additional bronzes shown in same case))
Pendant (Pei 珮)
11th–10th centuries BCE
Western Zhou 周 dynasty
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 15, 2010) Title changed from "Pendant (pei 珮): of a bird" to "Pendant in the form of a bird"; Object name from "Pendant: bird" to "Jewelry."

3. (Jeffrey Smith per Janet Douglas, June 17, 2010) Nephrite added as modifier to existing medium of "jade" based on conservation analysis.
4. (Najiba Choudhury per Keith Wilson, September 9, 2019) Title changed from "Pendant (pei) in the form of a bird" to "Pendant in the form of a water bird"; Date changed from "11th-10th century BCE" to "ca. 1050-950 BCE"; added Chinese caption by Jingmin Zhang; added the following to the Description field, "Fashioned of tan-colored, highly polished jade, the bird is presented in profile. The crested head atop a long, slender neck lends the bird an elegance that is echoed in the beveled lines of the wings and tail. Stylized projections on the tail and beneath the wings provide stabilizing elements for the overall composition. There is a circular perforation through the bird’s chest. (Calcified; chip/beak in front foot; some pitting; imperfections; rough spot on neck front; cinnabar adhering.)"; and added Past Label Text from the exhibition, In Praise of Ancestors.
Object name changed from "Pendant" to "Jewelry".

Published References

et al. Asian Art in the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery: The Inaugural Gift. Washington, 1987. cat. 96, p. 96.
Alfred Salmony. Carved Jade of Ancient China. Berkeley, 1938. pl. 24, no. 4.
J. Keith Wilson, Jingmin Zhang. Jades for Life and Death. .

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Pendant in the form of a water bird

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