Axe (yue 鉞)

1. (Undated Folder Sheet note) A flat, trapezoidal blade of mottled tan jade is mounted in a sturdy bronze fitting. A large, rectangular notch on one side of the blade, at the point where it meets the bronze socket, suggests that the jade might originally have served a different purpose. There are many instances in antiquity of a piece of jade having been adapted to a new purpose or function; the handsome color and smooth surface of the Sackler jade blade would have made it particularly attractive. This aspect of ancient Chinese jade technology reflects the extraordinary value attached to ceremonial artifacts.

Turquoise chips fill the thin metal bands on the bronze tang. That simple, abstract design, which is the same on both sides of the bronze fitting, centers around an oval-shaped eye motif. A large circular perforation on the undecorated portion of the bronze fitting would have enabled the blade to be hafted to a wooden handle.

A jade blade of this fragility would have been used for ceremonial rather than military functions. The contrast of the sumptuous materials--jade, turquoise and bronze--provides a clear indication of the colorful pageantry that was characteristic of Shang 商 dynasty court rituals.

2. (Jeffrey Smith per Keith Wilson, July 16, 2008) Ceremonial object added as secondary classification.
 
3. (Susan Kitsoulis per Keith Wilson, April 2, 2010) Object name changed from "Blade" to "Ceremonial object." Title changed from "Blade (chan 鏟)" to "Broad chisel."

4. (Najiba Choudhury per Keith Wilson, August 22, 2017) Title changed from "Broad chisel" to "Axe (yue 鉞)"; period one changed from "Shang dynasty" to "Late Shang dynasty"; period two added "Anyang period"; geography changed from "China" to "China, probably Henan province, Anyang"; and date changed from "ca. 2nd Millennium BCE" to "ca. 1300-ca. 1050 BCE"; medium changed from "Jade, bronze, and turquoise with cast and inlaid handle" to "Bronze with turquoise inlay and jade (nephrite) blade".

5. (Najiba Choudhury per Keith Wilson, January 29, 2019) Added Chinese translation by Jingmin Zhang; and added past label texts by Thomas Lawton from September 28, 1987 - January 5, 1989, and October 1, 1989 - September 10, 1990.

Added the following to the Description field, "The bronze haft is of rectangular shape widening in steps toward the socket where only one side bar remains. A trapezoidal hafting hole pierces the haft below its decorated zone. The upper half is inlaid with large turquoise or green glass chips that depict an eye surrounded by linear ornament giving the impression of a head of a zoomorphic figure in profile. This design occurs on both sides. A thick woven material is incrusted in some areas of the bronze. The jade blade, beveled on the sides, widens to the sharpened cutting edge. A cut-out exists at the top of one side of the blade. Its color is buff with one greenish area. (Alterations in the color from green to whitish-buff of the jade; heavy incrustation of patina on haft; some inlay missing or covered with incrustations of bronze patination; blade is chipped on corner of one side with a cut-out on the edge of the other end of the same side.)"