BABY ZHULONGS

Is this a Pig or a Dragon ? That is the question whether its a celestial dragon or a plebian pig....puzzles the  mind and makes us fly to wild theories ...:))

 

Pig or Dragon?



The experts says both hence Zhulong  as  Zhu=Pig and Long=Dragon. An unlikely marriage if you ask me. How a celestial mythical dragon became married to a plebian pig  baffles the brain but according to Wikipedia :

 

A pig dragon or zhūlóng (Chinese: t 玉豬龍, s 玉猪龙) is a type of jade artifact from Neolithic China. Pig dragons are zoomorphic forms with a pig-like head and elongated limbless body coiled around to the head and described as "suggestively fetal". Early pig dragons are thick and stubby, and later examples have more graceful, snakelike bodies.

  

8 Zhulongs



Zhulongs are  hallmarks of the Neolithic Hongshan Culture (c. 4000–3000 bce) and are normally large imposing figures so I can't account for why my lot of 8 zhulongs  is so mini. Are they genuine artifacts or replicas is another unanswerable question. The only  examples of small size zhulongs that I have seen are documented in the book Language of Adornment by Filippo Salviati who showed 2 examples of mini zhulongs measuring 1.6cm x 2.2cm and another 3cm x 4 cm which are still larger than my pieces. 

 

 In the picture below my largest zhulong measures only 1.9 x1.6 cm   and  1.5 x1.3 cm for the smallest. All have uncut central perforations and of the 8 only 1 has a stringing hole. They also show the Hongshan characteristics of large heavy lidded  pop out eyes, curled up body, fly back ears and nose creases.

 



8 baby zhulongs

 

Four of the zhulongs are made from calcite

 

 

Calcite zhulongs



One of the calcite zhulongs is badly corroded on one side.

 

 

badly corroded on one side



 

Here are the rest of the zhulongs in nephrite jade.

 

 

Jade zhulongs





2 of the zhulongs are chewing on some ancient quartz. I know this quartz in a hole on ancient jade has been debunked by experts as  ploys to fake authenticity. But on these two it looks pretty natural

 

 

Zhulong chewing on quartz



 

 Although diminutive in size they still exhibit the essence of zhulongism especially that inimitable  expression of "the grimacing sneering look" as described by some writers. At the same time their smallness and coiled body makes them look less like some fearsome beast but more like a cuddly amulet ! (depends how you look at them) or even a panda.

 

 

Grimacing but cuddly !



According to some sources, zhulongs are recorded as being made "as late as the Shang dynasty..." around 1600-1050 BCE and I cherish hopes that mine may be Shang creations  which is still an immortal 3,000 (more or less) years ago.

 

immortal in terms of age!



 



Cicadas are Immortal......

......or have been immortalized by Chinese cultures from Neolithic times to the 21st century. Chinese man  have been intrigued by these strange  creatures who emerge from the ground after years of hibernation to sing their haunting songs. I think it is this sequence of burial and birth that gives rise to the image of cicadas as a symbol of rebirth and  immortality.

Cicadas feature in many forms of Chinese art including poetry, jade carvings, paintings and calligraphy. Here is a poem  by Tang poetess Xue Tao celebrating  the songs of cicadas :

 Hearing Cicadas  by Xue Tao

 Washed clean by dew, cicada songs go far

 and like windblown leaves piling up 

 each cicada's cry blends into the next.

 Yet each lives on its own branch. 

And here is an old picture taken of a mural from a Tang royal tomb depicting a scene of ladies watching birds catch cicadas.

Catching Cicadas Mural at Prince Zhang Huai tomb



But it is cicadas celebrated in jade that I find  the most enduring. Being a city dweller,  I have never seen or heard the sounds of a real cicada yet I too have been beguiled into  romancing and collecting the creature. I have quite a few jade cicadas in my collection which I will show. The first few  cicadas I show are at the pupa stage rather than the full grown insect.



Possibly a  Hongshan cicada pupa

The first  pupa  is a Hongshan (around 3500-2500BC)  hopeful. It  has a  thick, somewhat cylindrical  body with flattish eyes at one end and a series of three wide, shallow grooves at the other.  The remainder of the body is plain and tapers slightly towards the  end. The large perforation near the head is funnel shaped, drilled from both sides with tool marks  in it.  It measures 3.5 cm. with rust seepage over the green jade surface. There are many  examples in museums, reputable auctions and books of this pupa shape, form and color which have been attributed to Hongshan Culture.



Probably Hongshan cicada pupa

Here are 2 more pictures showing frontal view  and  flat base of this pupa.

front view

flat base

The next creature shown below is rather mysterious and raises many  questions and doubts. It is made from jixue (chicken blood) stone. Although carved and shaped as an archaic  piece there are some points that do not jell. The shape of the body, eyes, and grooves on its back resemble Hongshan style. However the  6 holes, 3 on each side of the body, presumably representing the 6 legs of a cicada and ending in a sort of base,  is  unusual for a Hongshan pupa. The chicken blood stone is also seldom seen on Hongshan  artifacts. Could this be a later copy ?

Is this a cicada pupa made from attractive chicken blood stone?

And  unusual too,  is the horizontal slit from the belly to the legs ending in the base, as shown below

Tool marks can be seen in the slit

To add another query, is the tiny quartz stone peeping out of  the extreme right hole may have been left behind in the drilling process and which may be taken as a sign of  antiquity or a sign of conmanship.

Quartz stone for drilling seen in hole on right

So taking all the pros and cons into consideration,  is this a very rare ancient early culture pupa or a modern day invention? Whatever the answer to me it is an enjoyable piece.

Next is this slightly arched and  subtly sculpted cicada pupa. It measures 2.5cm and the most distinctive feature is  the  prominient eyes. The stone looks like chicken bone (ji gu) white  jade  showing reddish stains. The Chinese like to relate their jade stone with the chicken hence ji gu (chicken bone) and ji xue (chicken blood) What is it about jade that gets it  mixed with chicken  from chicken blood to chicken bone ? I hear there is also ji you (chicken oil) but unfortunately I don't have an example of such a stone to show.

Slightly arched with 2 prominient eyes

 It has an ox nosed perforation, the hole leads from top of head and exits through the face see picture below.



Ox nosed perforation

The color of this incredibly smooth stone with its red stains is reminiscent of Liangzhu ( 3500– 2500 BC) artifacts

Liangzhu color beautiful piece



By the time of the Han dynasty (206BC-220AD) cicadas were used as tongue amulets as well as ornaments. There is a Chinese saying which goes like this

In life use as pei (ornament)

In death use as han (tongue amulet)

The 3 cicadas shown below  have wings and are no longer pupas. These cicadas are flat and  stylised rather than lifelike. For the left and right cicadas the wings and heads section are indicated by 3 sharp cuts and the eyes and mouths by 3 slits. The centre piece has only one dividing centre line. Wonder whether this is the Han badao or 8 cut style. All the surfaces show patina and weathering.



Han yu

A Chinese seller  did tell me that cicadas carved in this "simple" fashion are likely to be  recarved pieces. He's got a point there but there is  something solemn and amuletish about them and perhaps they may be genuine tongue amulets from the Han dynasty.

Besides jade used as Han yu, glass was also sometimes used in the Han dynasty. The next cicada I show is a  corroded specimen of a glass cicada.

glass cicada



And the side view

side view



The base is plain.

the base



2 more small  jade cicada beads shown below are beads pierced from head to tail end. These look like Shang - Xi-Zhou period (16thcentury-221BC) but hard to determine so I just enjoy them.

A pair of cicada beads



Another full grown and life like cicada from late Qing (19th - early 20th century) is shown below. It measures 4.2 x 2.2cm. The wings and body are decorated with line carvings and it is pierced at the nose for attachment as pei or girdle ornament.

Late Qing green jade cicada



To add variety, here are a couple of cicada snuff bottles from Heng's collection.



Snuff bottles carved as cicadas

The obverse side



Finally  a very large crystal bead decorated with 3 cicada carvings on the surface. The age is indeterminate but it was the fashion  from early dynasties to use cicadas as decoration on ornamental objects such as bis, plaques, congs, etc.

Large crystal bead with cicada decoration



It measures 3.5cm x 7 cm and is decorated with three cicadas

A side view showing 2 of the three cicadas



Continuing the love for cicadas into the 21st century are these three modern day cicadas. They are pierced at the head and can be worn as pendants or used as toggles for handphones or handbags.

Recently carved cicadas in green and white jade



   Cicadas Are Forever



Double Connection Bi

Xuang lian bi is literally translated as Double Connection Bi. It is a shape orginating from the Hongshan Culture about BC.4000–3000 BC.

My miniature double connection bi measuring 2.7cm is made in the Hongshan style. It consists of two bis which are carved from one piece of jade with the bottom bi bigger than the top bi. Genuine double connection bis from the Hongshan culture are generally larger and I am sure mine is a replica. The seller had told me quite deadpan, that "large sized Hongshan pieces can be found anywhere but a small one would be a rare find." He!He! And he expected me to swallow his tall tale!

But inspite of the story which gave me a good laugh, I still bought the piece though not at Hongshan price. After all its quite nicely made, the jade is an attractive pale green, and this delicate piece appeals to me as my normal preference is for small over big. I am also optimistic that it may be made by a Ming miniaturist after my own heart. A final advantage is that I can wear it as a pendant strung up with my personally hand knotted cord.

The shape also resembles the number 8, which for Chinese is considered lucky. So heres to "BA!" (8) aka "FA" (prosperity)

Jade Slit-tube (Jue)

This Slit-tube artefact measuring 2cm long is also a Jue.

According to a Chinese source (Chinese jadeware: picture reference dictionary p.061) slit-tube as well as slit-ring jues were in existence in the Chahai Culture, around 5000BC. However, J Rawson in " Chinese jade: from the Neolith" says that "The earliest jue, which are more like slit-tubes than slit-rings, are found in the north-east in the Xinglongwa (about 5000 BC) and Chahai cultures (about 4500 BC), which preceded the Hongshan (about 3800-2700 BC)"

Although tube-shaped jues are described as probably ear ornaments by both the Chinese source as well as J Rawson I am at a loss to see how this slit-tube can be worn on the ear without falling off. These people from the Neolithic cultures sure have baffling ornaments. !



My specimen is plain with no embellishments and I am thinking that it may belong to some early neolithic culture. Jues (both tube-shaped and planar) from the later Warring states period have elaborate decorations of dragon, bird or cloud patterns on their surfaces.

IMPO a slit-tube (jue) looks more like a bead that has been slit and a better name for it could be "slit-bead (jue)." !

There is much weathering on the slit-tube, see pix below :

"Concentric-ring tool marks" are also present in the crevice of the slit-tube.


Here is another view of the slit-tube:


Looking at the slit-tube from this angle, gives me a wild idea that the tube may be sliced into several segments to form a few flat slit-rings. Now thats another silly thought for me to chew on. Yum! :))