Object: Sword scabbard chape with mask S2012.9.992

Classification: Weapon and Armament

Historical period(s): Western Han dynasty, 206 BCE-9 CE

Object Date: 206 BCE-9 CE

Medium: Jade (nephrite)

Dimension(s): H x W x D (overall): 3.8 x 6.3 x 1.4 cm (1 1/2 x 2 1/2 x 9/16 in)

Origin: China

Credit Line: The Dr. Paul Singer Collection of Chinese Art of the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Smithsonian Institution; a joint gift of the Arthur M. Sackler Foundation, Paul Singer, the AMS Foundation for the Arts, Sciences, and Humanities, and the Children of Arthur M. Sackler

Collection: Arthur M. Sackler Collection

Accession Number: S2012.9.992

: 獸面紋劍珌
西漢（公元前206--公元9年）
中國
軟玉
高3.8、寬6.3、厚1.4釐米
史密森博物學院亞瑟·M·賽克勒美術館保羅·辛格中國藝術收藏品；亞瑟·M·賽克勒基金會，保羅·辛格，AMS基金會，及亞瑟·M·賽克勒子女聯合贈送
器物編號：S2012.9.992

Provenance: ?-1997
Dr. Paul Singer (1904-1997), method of acquisition unknown [1]

1997-1999
In the custody of Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, upon death of Paul Singer and establishment of a loan agreement [2]

From 1999
The National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, by gift of the Arthur M. Sackler Foundation, Paul Singer, the AMS Foundation for the Arts, Sciences, and Humanities, and the Children of Dr. Arthur M. Sackler [3]

Notes:

[1] The collection of Chinese art and antiquities assembled by Dr. Paul Singer over time was purchased by him on behalf of Dr. Arthur M. Sackler, Jillian Sackler, The Arthur M. Sackler Foundation, the AMS Foundation for the Arts, Sciences and Humanities and later was transferred to the children of Dr. Arthur M. Sackler.

[2] The Dr. Paul Singer Collection of Chinese Art came into the custody of the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, upon Paul Singer’s death in January 1997. See loan agreement between the Executors of the Singer Estate and the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, February 1997, copy in collection accession files. In March 2023, the museum's legal name changed to National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution.

[3] The entirety of the Dr. Paul Singer Collection of Chinese Art formally accessioned in 2012. See the Dr. Paul Singer Collection of Chinese Art gift agreement, March 1999, copy in collection accession files. The work is part of the Museum’s Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Collection.

Research updated on June 12, 2024.

Previous owner(s): Dr. Paul Singer (1904-1997)

Curatorial Remarks

1. (Najiba Choudhury per Matthew Clarke, December 17, 2021) Medium changed from "Jade" to "Jade (nephrite).
2. (Najiba Choudhury per Keith Wilson, February 1, 2024) Title changed from "Chape" to "Sword scabbard chape with mask"; Date changed from "3rd century BCE" to "206 BCE–9 CE"; and added Chinese caption by Jingmin Zhang.

Unpublished Research: Draft catalogue entry (no. 770) for S2012.9.992 for the catalogue of the Singer collection (1970--1990); by Louisa Fitzgerald Huber
Chape
Western Han 漢 dynasty, 3rd century BCE
Jade
Width 6.3 cm (2 1/2 in)
The decoration is composed of a bilaterally symmetrical arrangement of T shapes in flat relief. The taotie's eyes, nose, and incised whiskers are positioned near the narrow, upper edge of the chape. The jade is a translucent milky gray green with whitish clouds and tan markings.
Two chapes with the same decoration and datable to the end of the late Eastern Zhou 周 were found in Tomb 172 at Yangzishan 羊子山, Chengdu 成都, Sichuan 四川 province. [1]
[1] Ssu-ch'uan sheng wen-wu kuan-li wei- yüan-hui [Sichuan sheng wenwu guanli weiyuanhui] 四川省文物管理委員會, "Ch'eng-tu Yang-tzu-shan ti 172 hao mu fa-chueh pao-kao [Chengdu Yangzishan di 172 hao mu fajue baogao] 成都羊子山第172號墓發掘報告," K'ao ku hsueh pao [Kaogu xuebao] 考古学报 1956.4, fig. 19:7--8, following p. 16.

Published References: Published References are currently unavailable.

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Sword scabbard chape with mask

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