Object: Pendant in the form of a tiger S2012.9.295

Classification: Jewelry and Ornament

Historical period(s): Anyang period, Late Shang dynasty, ca. 1250-ca. 1050 BCE

Object Date: ca. 1250-ca. 1050 BCE

Medium: Fluorite

Dimension(s): H x W x D: 2.5 × 1.9 × 6.6 cm (1 × 3/4 × 2 5/8 in)

Origin: China, probably Henan province, Anyang

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: S2012.9.295

: 虎形飾
晚商安陽時期（公元前1250-1050年）
中國，疑似河南安陽市
螢石
高2.5、寬1.9、厚6.6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：S2012.9.295

Past label text: 1. (Keith Wilson, Anyang: China's Ancient City of Kings, Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, February 25, 2023 to April 28, 2024)

Pendants in the form of a tiger
Anyang period, ca. 1250–1050 BCE

Jade (nephrite) and fluorite
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 S2012.9.362 and
S2012.9.295

The Royal Hunt
These late Anyang-period wine containers with matching
inscriptions name an “Officer of the Hounds” in charge of one of
the king’s hunting grounds and may have been commissioned
and used by the same individual. Oracle bone inscriptions tell
us these officers were responsible for assisting with the king’s
hunts. Royal hunts involved chariots but not always successfully.
One famous divination recounts the toppling of the king’s chariot by another officer during the pursuit of wild buffalo. Along with
other unsurprising quarry like deer and boar, the king’s hunt also
sometimes included elephants and tigers. The hunt probably
involved bow and arrow—in Shang writing, there are depictions
of tigers with arrows in their heads—and perhaps this mysterious
pointed weapon or tool with a hook; maybe part of a whip, it is
sometimes found with chariotry equipment in elite tombs.

Curatorial Remarks

1. (Najiba Choudhury per Keith Wilson, May 2, 2018) Period two changed from "early Anyang period" to "Anyang period"; geography changed from "China, Henan province, probably Anyang" to "China, probably Henan province, Anyang"; added Chinese object caption by Jingmin Zhang.
2. (YinYing Chen per Keith Wilson, February 17, 2023)
Change date from "ca. 1300-ca. 1050 BCE" to "ca. 1250-1050 BCE."
Change date from "公元前1300-1050年" to "公元前1250-1050年" in the translation field.

Unpublished Research: Draft catalogue entry (no. 109) for S2012.9.295 for the catalogue of the Singer collection (1970--1990); by Louisa Fitzgerald Huber
Crouching Tiger
Shang 商 dynasty, 13th century BCE
Fluorite
Length 6.2 cm (2 7/16 in)

This softly contoured sculpture of a crouching tiger is fashioned of highly translucent, light yellowish green fluorite. Single recessed lines define the animal's eyes and ears and form the patterns of curving lines on the hind and forequarters, while a recurving design in double lines with projecting hooks indicates the tiger's stripes. The mouth is shaped by horizontal cuts; the ears and nose appear in slight relief. The tail, curved around at the tip, is embellished along the spine by a row of chevrons. Each pair of legs is separated underneath by a longitudinal slot. Some deterioration of the surface is noticeable on one side.

A pair of jade tigers unearthed from Tomb 5 at Xiaotun 小屯 are similar to the present example, although their shapes are more angular and their appearance more ferocious. [1]

[1] Zhongguo shehui kexueyuan kaogu yanjiusuo 中國社會科學院考古研究所, Yinxu Fu Hao mu 殷墟婦好墓 (Beijing: Wenwu chubanshe, 1980), p. 157, fig. 82: 6, pl. 105: 2.

Published References

J. Keith Wilson, Jingmin Zhang. Jades for Life and Death. .

SI Usage Statement

Usage conditions apply

There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.

The information presented on this website may be revised and updated at any time as ongoing research progresses or as otherwise warranted. Pending any such revisions and updates, information on this site may be incomplete or inaccurate or may contain typographical errors. Neither the Smithsonian nor its regents, officers, employees, or agents make any representations about the accuracy, reliability, completeness, or timeliness of the information on the site. Use this site and the information provided on it subject to your own judgment. The National Museum of Asian Art welcomes information that would augment or clarify the ownership history of objects in their collections..

Save this image | Request Permission | Terms of use

Pendant in the form of a tiger

Related Objects

Web Resources