Object: Straight chisel (gui 圭) F1917.57

Classification: Ceremonial Object

Historical period(s): Qing dynasty, 1644-1911, in the style of a Neolithic model

Object Date: 1644-1911, in the style of a Neolithic model

Medium: Jade (nephrite)

Dimension(s): H x W x D: 20.9 x 3.9 x 1 cm (8 1/4 x 1 9/16 x 3/8 in)

Origin: China

Credit Line: Gift of Charles Lang Freer

Collection: Freer Gallery of Art Collection

Accession Number: F1917.57

: 圭
商代（公元前1600–1050年）
中國
軟玉
高20.9、寬3.9、厚1釐米
查爾斯·蘭·佛利爾贈送
器物編號：F1917.57

Provenance: To 1917
Li Wenqing (late 19th-early 20th century), Shanghai, to 1917 [1]

From 1917 to 1919
Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Li Wenqing, in New York, in 1917 [2]

From 1920
Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]

Notes:

[1] See Original Miscellaneous List, S.I. 1144, pg. 259, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives. See also, Voucher no. 12, January 1917.

[2] See note 1.

[3] The original deed of Charles Lang Freer's gift was signed in 1906. The collection was received in 1920 upon the completion of the Freer Gallery.

Previous owner(s): Li Wenqing 李文卿 (C.L. Freer source) (ca. 1869-1931)
Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919)

Description: Ceremonial implement; slender chisel shaped object of the type kuei [gui 圭]; two conical perforations at one end, bored from opposite sides; edges rounded and slightly tapering to beveled end; closely mottled gray and pale tan; decoration: incised, faint traces of design between perforations; unctuous surface. (Corner broken.)

Acquired with an inscribed box.

Past label text: 1.( Ancient Chinese Jade, September 4, 1980–March 6, 1981; by Julia K. Murray) (shown with F1935.7, F1917.34, F1917.31, F1915.69; additional jades organized by types shown in same case)

Based on a Neolithic stone tool whose blade is sharpened at the top, early jade chisels were ceremonial rather than utilitarian. The shape was retained in the jade repertoire in the Shang 商 and Chou [Zhou] 周 periods. The simple, elegant shape of a chisel is subtly embellished by smoothly ground edges, which are shown to advantage by the lustrous polish of the entire surface.

Most chisels have a single perforation, often drilled from one side only, resulting in a hole whose diameter is larger on one side of the piece. This long, sleek chisel displays two holes drilled from opposite sides, with faint traces of an incised design between them.

Curatorial Remarks

1. Bought from Lee Van Ching [Li Wenqing] 李文卿, of Shanghai 上海, in New York. For price, see Original Miscellaneous List, p. 259. $40.

2. (Undated Folder Sheet note) Original attribution: Chinese. Han 漢. See further, S.I. 1144, Appendix VIII (see Paragraph 6).

3. (Undated Folder Sheet note) Sp. G. is 2.995.

4. (Isabel Ingram Meyer, 1945) Chou [Zhou] 周 dynasty.

5. (Elisabeth West Fitzhugh, 1956) X ray diffraction analysis. Nephrite. Film F 148. March 15, 1956.

6. (H. Elise Buckman, 1964) The Envelope File contained no further information, and has now been destroyed.

7. (Thomas Lawton, 1973) The following information was carved on the box in which this object arrived: Han yen kuei [Han yan gui] 漢琰圭, or "Han 漢 dynasty sharpened chisel.”

8. (Thomas Lawton, 1978) Late Shang 商.

9. (Julia K. Murray, September 1980) Exhibition Ancient Chinese Jade label text; moved to label field.

10. (Julia K. Murray, 1982) For a general discussion of chisel shaped jades, see Folder Sheet F1917.31. Chisel F1917.57 is more elongated and has a glossier polish than the others in the Freer collection.

11. (Jeffrey Smith per Keith Wilson, July 8, 2008) Ceremonial Object added as secondary classification.

12. (Susan Kitsoulis per Keith Wilson, April 2, 2010) Object name changed from "Ceremonial implement" to "Ceremonial object." Title changed from "Ceremonial implement" to "Straight chisel (gui 圭)."

13. (Jeffrey Smith, per Keith Wilson, March 2, 2016) Period changed from Shang dynast to Qing dynasty; object date changed from ca. 1600-1050 BCE to dates of Qing, 1644-1911, in the style of a Neolithic model.

Published References

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

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Straight chisel (gui 圭)

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