Object: Ornament in the form of a dragon with raised irregular curls S1987.881

Classification: Jewelry and Ornament

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: 6.8 x 21.8 x 1 cm (2 11/16 x 8 9/16 x 3/8 in)

Origin: China, Henan province, Liulage

Credit Line: Gift of Arthur M. Sackler

Collection: Arthur M. Sackler Collection

Accession Number: S1987.881

凸面不規則谷紋龍形飾
東周戰國時期（公元前475--221年）
中國河南琉璃閣
軟玉
高6.8、寬21.8、厚1釐米
亞瑟·M·賽克勒贈送
器物編號：S1987.881

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 Bahr (1907–1986) by inheritance upon the death of Abel William Bahr [2]

From 1963 to 1987
Dr. Arthur M. Sackler, New York, NY, purchased from the Bahr Collection in 1963 [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 the Arthur M. Sackler Foundation, October 9, 2009.

[2] Edna Bahr inherited upon the death of her father, Abel William Bahr. Edna Bahr divided the collection, making gifts to museums and selling to private collectors. She sold several pieces to Arthur M. Sackler in 1963.

[3] See #253: “Pendant Regardant. Relief spirals. Gray tan,” on list provided by the Arthur M. Sackler Foundation, October 9, 2009, copy in object file.

[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): Abel William Bahr (1877-1959)
Dr. Arthur M. Sackler (1913-1987)

Curatorial Remarks

1. (Jeffrey Smith per Keith Wilson, July 1, 2008) "Jewelry" added as secondary classification.
2. (Susan Kitsoulis per Keith Wilson, June 24, 2010) Object Name changed from "Pendant: dragon" to "Jewelry." Title changed from "Pendant (pei 佩): dragon" to "Pendant (pei 佩) in the form of a dragon."
3. (Jeffrey Smith per Matthew Clarke, August 1, 2022) Medium changed from Jade to Jade (nephrite).
4. (Najiba Choudhury per Keith Wilson, March 29, 2023) Title changed from "Pendant (pei) in the form of a dragon" to "Ornament in the form of a dragon with raised irregular curls"; added Period Two as "Warring States period"; Date changed from "5th-4th century BCE to "475–221 BCE"; and added Chinese caption by Jingmin Zhang.

Published References

et al. Asian Art in the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery: The Inaugural Gift. Washington, 1987. cat. 60, p. 104.

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Ornament in the form of a dragon with raised irregular curls

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