Object: Ornament in the form of a dragon with raised uniform curls S2012.9.1041

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 (overall): 5 × 19.1 × 0.3 cm (2 × 7 1/2 × 1/8 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: S2012.9.1041

凸面規則谷紋龍形飾
東周戰國時期（公元前475--221年）
中國
軟玉
高5、寬19.1、厚0.3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： S2012.9.1041

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. (Jeffrey Smith per Keith Wilson, July 29, 2008) "Jewelry" and "Ornament" added as secondary classification.
2. (Najiba Choudhury per Keith Wilson, March 30, 2023) Title changed from "Dragon with undulating body" to "Ornament in the form of a dragon with raised uniform curls"; Date changed from "4th-3rd century BCE" to "475-221 BCE"; added Chinese caption by Jingmin Zhang; and added Unpublished Research.

Unpublished Research: Draft catalogue entry (no. 344) for S2012.9.1041 for the catalogue of the Singer collection (1970--90); by Louisa Fitzgerald Huber
Dragon with Undulating Body
Eastern Zhou 周 dynasty, Warring States period, 4th--3rd century BCE
Jade
Length 19 cm (7 1/2 in)
This serpent dragon is of the same type described in the preceding entry, differing mainly by its sleek, curving shape and the more orderly arrangement of raised spirals on its body. Of the two pieces, this specimen surpasses the other in its pure elegance. The figure, fashioned of translucent, gray-green jade, is perforated twice where the body begins its downward curve.
Published: Georges Salles, Arts de La Chine Ancienne (Paris: Musée de L'Orangerie, 1937), no. 128.

Published References: Published References are currently unavailable.

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Ornament in the form of a dragon with raised uniform curls

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