Forked blade (zhang 璋)

1. Bought from Lai Yuan and Company 來遠公司, New York. For price, see Original Miscellaneous List, p. 191. $410.

2. (Undated Folder Sheet note) Original attribution: Chinese. "Ancient." See further, S.I. 878, Appendix VII.

3. (Undated Folder Sheet note) Sp. G. is 2.955. Incrustation prevents higher result.

4. (Archibald Gibson Wenley, 1946) Shang 商 dynasty.

5. (Undated Folder Sheet note) See Folder Sheet F1916.491, Archibald Gibson Wenley, note 5. For fuller discussion, see Folder Sheet F1916.492, Archibald Gibson Wenley, note 5.

6. (Thomas Lawton, 1978) Late Shang 商--Early Western Chou [Zhou] 周.

7. (Julia K. Murray, 1982) (Add chang [zhang] 璋 above ceremonial implement.) Chang [Zhang] 璋 F1916.165 represents a variation of the typical chang [zhang] 璋 in which the pair of lateral projections near the hole is replaced by more elaborate crenellations, an embellishment found on chang [zhang] 璋 excavated from Shang 商 sites. (See Folder Sheet F1916.492 for a  discussion of chang [zhang] 璋.) The crenellations are very carefully and intricately elaborated, more so than on chang [zhang] 璋 F1916.493, which also belongs to the crenellated type. Due to its thinness the crescentic top has broken. The thickness on either side of the irregular ridge visible on one surface is not uniform. A chang [zhang] 璋 of very similar  shape and articulation was excavated at Shih mao [Shimao] 石峁, Shen mu hsien [Shenmu xian] 神木縣 in northeast Shensi [Shaanxi] 陝西 from a coffin made of stone slabs, which the excavators tentatively suggest might be Shang 商 (reproduced in Tai Ying-hsin [Dai Yingxin] 戴應新, "Shensi Shen-mu hsien Shih-mao Lung-shan wen-hua i-chih tiao-ch'a [Shaanxi Shenmu xian Shimao Longshan wenhua yizhi diaocha] 陝西神木縣石峁龍山文化遺址調查," K'ao ku [Kaogu] 考古 1977. 3, pl. 4:5).

8. (Stephen Allee per Keith Wilson, March 31, 2008) On this date entered: Period One (Late Neolithic period), Date (ca. 2500--2000 BCE), Artist (Qijia 齊家 culture), Title, Object name, Geographical region (Northwest China); plus Description per Jenny F. So and Dimensions per Christine Lee, from Jade Project Database.

9. (Jeffrey Smith per Keith Wilson, July 17, 2008) Ceremonial object added as secondary classification.

10. (Stephen Allee, March 23, 2009) Added designation "nephrite" to Medium as per Janet Douglas using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (January 8, 2009).

11. (Susan Kitsoulis per Keith Wilson, June 10, 2010) Changed artist constituent from "Qijia 齊家 culture" to "Erlitou 二里頭 culture"; changed geographical location from "Northwest China" to "China"; date from "ca. 2500--2000 BCE" to "ca. 1800--1600 BCE."

12. (Jeffrey Smith, March 30, 2016) Transferred from the description field: (Jenny So, from Jade Project Database) Dark greyish-olive "puddingstone." Very thin; near paper-thin at uneven top (result of damage). Both faces even and same, with lengthwise ridge on one face. Conical hole at tang. Uneven slice mark running lengthwise on one face. Multiple notches, all carefully shaped above perforated tang. Wide concave edge of notch just above tang broken by smaller notches/crenellations. Three more crenellations line the curved edged just above each notch.

"Chang"
Ceremonial implement; blade with one straight and one slightly concave side; upper end irregularly beveled to a sharp edge; longitudinal median ridge indicated; indented lateral projections and notches on each side above perforated tang; greenish black with black spots and yellowish brown translucence in thin areas; earth incrusted granular patches on tang. (Breaks on tang and upper end). Box.