In Praise of Ancient Chinese Ornaments

This group of beads and pendants is made up of an interesting mix of bird and animal forms together with cylinders, barrel and tabular shapes. As they show characteristics of the middle Neolithic, Shang, Xizhou and Han dynasties (about 4000 BC - 220 AD) I am relating them broadly to these periods.



A selection of ancient beads and pendants



 There are four birds in the set and  I have a soft spot for the first three. Each bird measures approximately 2cm x 1.7cm. They have line carvings all over their bodies with holes drilled from head to feet and must have been used for stringing. Could date from Han dynasty (206BC- 220AD) or earlier.

Petite bird beads

 The fourth bird with outstretched wings  is also one of my favourites. Such birds have been recovered  from Hongshan Culture sites (about 4700Bc - 2900BC) but it's hard to confirm whether mine is Hongshan or Shang dynasty (1600 -1046BC) vintage. Because of its smaller size 3.2cm x3 cm I tend to believe it is a Shang model.  This is a soulful looking bird and the stone has been  abraded to show raised eyes and breast. There is also a centre band with minimal carving below the breast.

Soulful bird



 The reverse shows ox nose suspension holes  and a pair of grooves around the tail and wings. Toomarks are seen in the holes and grooves.

Reverse showing ox-nose holes and pair of grooves

Next are 2 small animals,  a pig bead (2cm x 1cm) pierced from top to bottom and a rabbit pendant (2.2cm x 1cm)with attachement hole at the nose.  I speculate that these are from Xizhou dynasty (1046-771 BC) which has many tiny animals in its repertoire.

Pig and rabbit





 These three cylindrical faience beads can also be dated to Xizhou dynasty  as they are commonly used in necklace assemblages (pei)of that dynasty. Longest cylinder measures 1.4cm

Faience beads

Barrel bead is 1.4cm long with  a foetus like (or maybe its a silkworm) carved in high relief,  with double collars on both ends. Need to do further research on the carving style to establish its time in history.

Foetus or silkworm carving



Tabular bead with turtle shell pattern is likely to be Shang dynasty vintage given the Shang dynasty's  frequent use of turtle shells for oracle divination. Measures 1.8 cm x 1.5 cm

Tabular bead with turtle shell pattern



There are grooves on both sides of the bead.

Grooves at both sides





 Bead with taotie motif is the next intriguing bead coming up.  According to Wikipedia

The taotie is a mofif commonly found on Chinese ritual bronze vessels from the Shang and Zhou dynasty. The design typically consists of a zoomorphic mask described as being frontal, bilaterally symmetrical with a pair of raised eyes and no lower jaw area.

The specimen I show measures 1.2 cm , is curved inwards ,with the top wider than the bottom. It has a large drilled hole from top to bottom with  the top part of the hole larger than the bottom and another perforation in the centre. The curved surface shows a pair of slanted eyes with cloud pattern eyebrows but lacks a lower jaw or mouth. Beads of this ilk have been used among other things,  as  finial or closing device  for necklaces particularly in the Xizhou dynasty.

Intriguing bead with taotie mask pattern



Showing the large drilled hole

And the uncarved reverse is slightly curved with two dents  at both ends. I am not sure what purpose the dents serve.

Reverse has two dents at the sid





Last but not least is the pendant with monster head motif. It is decorated with striations at  the top of the head perhaps indicating hair, with large slanting eyes and long nose but the mouth is not shown. Not sure whether this is the head of a monster or some fearsome animal but its portrayal is simply unforgettable.  It measures 2.7cm x 1.8cm  This bead pendant may be as early as Neolithic times.

Monster head or wild beast ?

 The reverse shows ox-nose perforations with toolmarks visible

Ox-nose perforations with tool marks



And to round up here is my priceless collection of ancient beads, birds, animals, monsters and taotie again.

In praise of ancient Chinese ornaments.



 Finally I'd like to add that none of these ornaments,  beads, pendants have been authenticated. I am just recording them for my own indulgence and to share with whoever cares to look. 😄

 I am also apologetic that I am not clear about the names of the stones or minerals that these ornaments were made from.











A set of Ancient Jade Ornaments

This set of jade ornaments  comprise a lovely arc shaped jade plaque or huang,  purportedly from the Han dynasty (206 BC-24AD) and four cylindrical beads of unknown vintage.

 

A set of jade ornaments

 

The top ornament is a an arc shaped plaque or   huang  with dragon heads on both ends while the body is decorated with low relief grain design on one side. Measuring 8cm x 1cm this ornament is often seen in the Han dynasty (206BC-24 AD) as well as earlier dynasties and cultures.

 



Double headed dragon heads on arc shaped  plaque or huang

The back is plain and uncarved

Uncarved back



The short cylindrical beads have a strange carving of  what looks like a bird at one end....

carved image looks like a bird

..... and an upturned tail at the other..

Looks like a tail?

 

 The perforation is large and biconical

 

large bi conical  perforation





The design wraps round the cylindrical bead and can best be seen when impressed against a plasticine  mould somewhat like a seal. The image that appears on the mould looks like a  bird  floating on water the head at one end and an upturned tail at the other. Or  is it a boat ? It could also be some archaic language.  This bird like or boat like image is bordered by two cloud scrolls often seen in the Zhou-Han periods. The beads measure approximately 2cm x 1.3cm. I have not come across this design on jade beads before and am still trying to figure out which era it belongs.  Wish someone could enlighten me!

 

 

Design seen when impressed on a mold









3 Lovely Lasses

These 3 slim girls carved from jade hail from maybe 2000 years ago.



Maybe as old as 2000 years

Judging from the degree of corrosion on the jade they must have endured long years of burial. Although  they  have lost their original    lustre some dignified grace remains in their tall silhouette , long sleeves, hands demurely folded at the waist.

 

Lacklustre  but still dignified



Each piece is minimally carved and the facial features are simply notched.  As the figures do not carry any air of nobility  they may represent serving maids from the countryside. I am guessing  that they hail from the Han dynasty (206BC -220AD) as their gait and garments, top knots etc resemble paintings and wall murals of Han dynasty folk.

 

Simple and dignified



The back view shows the long sleeves and a line indicates the hair

 

Back view



At top of the head there is a ring hole for attachment as pendant

Ring hole for attachment as pendant

Their small size measuring 4.7cm x 0.5 cm, together with the ring hole indicates that they may have served as components in  ornamental jade sets such as the one set up by me below.

 

Could have been in a set of Jade Ornaments such as this "made-up" set



As Han jade, the carving on these pieces are not great but they are  interesting figurines from the past. When they were newly carved and polished, I am sure they must have been Lovely Lasses.



3 Lovely Lasses



 

An Ornament from the Past

 
         the le le

These little odd shaped beads ( should I call them beads because they have perforations ?) had me wondering for sometime about their origin and use. I had bought them from a seller who could only say "le le" by way of description and as I am not fluent in Chinese,  I was none the wiser. I did try the bi-lingual dictionaries but got not much help. For all I know he may be having me on !

6 funnel-shaped jade objects called Le le

The six dark color nephrite stones narrow from the middle with the bottom wider than the top, may be described as trumpet-shaped or funnel-shaped. Measuring around 2 cm, each piece is drilled from top to bottom and  the holes are small.  None of the pieces are  of the same height or size and each "le le" is partially covered with patina of age. The le les  are entirely plain with no surface decorations or carvings.

Here is a picture showing the bottom ends and looked at from this angle their shapes are reminiscent of the supertrees in our Garden by the Bay Park or even ancient toadstools from a jurassic park :)

 

bottoms up they look like ancient toadstools or supertrees!

Supertrees, Garden by the Bay Park

To learn more about their source and origin I searched through many publications on early jade and found some useful references and illustrations. In Roger Chow's book Sparkling Splendours there are similar funnel shaped objects in crystal and agate form. He has described them as ear ornaments and attributed them to Han dynasty(206 BC – 220 AD) On the other hand, in Jessica Rawson's Chinese Jade from the Neolithic to the Qing similar shaped  jade beads  were dated to Dong Zhou-Han dynasty (5th-2nd century BC)

However Rawson's examples are more than thrice the size and have elaborate carvings and large holes.   Size and decoration wise my le les (small size, plain and small holes) are more in keeping with the crystal and agate samples shown in Sparkling Splendors by Roger Chow. So I am more inclined to  to think they are ear ornaments dating from that period (Han)

As ear ornaments I guess they could have been set with gold and pearls, or strung with silk threads and the hole facilitates  attachment to the ear. Perhaps they were worn as dangle earrings  like the one I tried to recreate below ?

le le as earring

 

A le can also be used as a pei or accessory to be strung up with other beads/ornaments  to form a pectoral (chatelaine).I don't have enough ancient components to form a dramatic pectoral such as those shown in books. But here is my shot at making a mini pectoral, consisting of funnel shaped les, xizhou carnelian discs, one silkworm and one very old pearl bead.

 

mini pectoral

 

They also look nice strung with white calcite discs as a contrast.







strimg with carnelian and white calcite discs



Although  my les have no provenance I'll let the pieces speak for themselves :)

*Postscript:
Just got hold of the book Lazurite : a journey into ancient China. According to the book ear ornaments called er dang were fashionable with ladies of the Han era. These er dang were made in glass and were funnel shaped. The book shows many examples of these er dang or ear ornaments which have been attributed to Warring States and Han dynasty excavations.
 



I LOVE COLLECTING....

Jade birds.......

From neolithic times to the present day, birds in their infinite variety and plumage have been carved on jade. These captivating jade birds have also caught my eye and in this post I will be showing a selection of favourites from my collection.

The nephrite birds in pic 1-3 are from Qing to early 20th century 

Pic 1  3 nephrite birds carved in semi circular style.

Pic 2 Pair of cranes in white nephrite

Measuring 6cm this pair of tall cranes could not have been hat or hair adornments. Perhaps they were originally used as inlays for furniture, boxes or screens.

Pic 3   A flock of  nephrite birds

The nephrite birds in Pic 3 are small flat pieces which have served a variety of uses from hairpins, headgear  to  hat and garment ornamentation.

The jadite birds in Pic 4-5 are of more recent origin and were probably meant to be used as pendants.

Pic 4 these look like turkeys.

Pic 5 Another large turkey

Pic 6  Pigeon or Doves ?

The jadite pigeon or doves in Pic 6 are jade applique sewn on to clothes.

Pic 7 Jadite bird among foliage

Here's a large heavy 5.5cm jadite pendant which is carved on both sides. One side shows a perky bird among foliage while the reverse depicts a chinese coin. It must have once graced the neck of some grand chinese dame.

Pic 8  Carved on both sides with reverse showing a coin

Pic9    Mini 2cm jade plaque with bird engraving

Pity this jade plaque in Pic 9 is a standalone. If I had a few more pieces I could make a pretty bracelet.

Pic  10 Large bird and little chick

The large bird in pic 10 is likely to be from Qing to early 20th century while little chick is a modern bird bead. Such new bird beads can be found in large quantity in the Guangzhou jade  market, shown below.

Pic11         New jade at Guangzhou jade market

Pic 12   More jade at jade market

Pic 13  Trio of old birds

I really love this trio of old birds in Pic13. These sweeties  have a solemn, dignified bearing and look like they have stepped out of the archaic age.  I'm going to make a wild guess that they maybe as early as Han time. Hah ! That's what I am secretly hoping :)  As a bonus they are also beads being perforated from crown to base.

Pic14    these 2 are modern

Pic 15  Pair of love birds from the Qing dynasty

And finally here's a pair of love birds from Qing dynasty which are also beads.