Pendant in the form of a bird
date: label: Date
content: ca. 1300-ca. 1050 BCE
label: Period
content: Late Shang dynasty, Anyang period
notes: label: Description
content: Pendant bird (peacock?); carved in the round; pierced; translucent yellow-gray. (Crest broken off; clouds of calcification; surface rough.)
label: Provenance
content: As early as 1928
label: Provenance
content: Likely excavated shortly after the discovery of archeological sites in Anyang, Honan Province, China [1]
label: Provenance
content: To 1948
label: Provenance
content: Zhang Naiji (1899–1948), Shanghai, China then New York, NY [2]
label: Provenance
content: 1948 to around 1954
label: Provenance
content: Zhang Mei Chien (1901–c.1955), New York, NY inherited upon her husband’s death [3]
label: Provenance
content: Likely around 1954 to 1961
label: Provenance
content: C. T. Loo Chinese Art, New York, NY purchased from Zhang Mei Chien in New York [4]
label: Provenance
content: Likely around 1961 to 1964
label: Provenance
content: Frank Caro Chinese Art, New York, New York, mode of acquisition unknown [6]
label: Provenance
content: Likely around 1964 to 1987
label: Provenance
content: Dr. Arthur M. Sackler, New York, NY purchased from Frank Caro Chinese Art, on August 27, 1964 in New York, NY [5]
label: Provenance
content: From 1987
label: Provenance
content: Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, gift of Dr. Arthur M. Sackler on September 11, 1987 [6]
label: Provenance
content: Notes:
label: Provenance
content: [1] Object published in Archaic Chinese Jades: Special Exhibition (Philadelphia: The University Museum, February 1940), cat. 102. Catalogue entry notes discovery site. Excavations at Anyang began in 1928. This object closely resembles the style of the Anyang Period and was likely procured shortly after the site’s discovery. Zhang purchased many of his works near or at archeological sites (see: see: Alfred Salmony, Chinese Jade: Through the Wei Dynasty. New York: The Ronald Press Company, 1963, 115).
label: Provenance
content: [2] Zhang Naiji (also known as N.C. Chang) was a businessman, born to a prestigious family in Zhejiang that made their wealth in the silk and salt industries. He collected ancient Chinese art objects and Chinese coins. Zhang amassed his collection whilst living in Shanghai, before leaving for America in 1938, and acquired his objects onsite of archeological excavations (see: Alfred Salmony, Chinese Jade through the Wei Dynasty. New York: The Ronald Press Company, 1963: 115.).
label: Provenance
content: Zhang lent his collection anonymously to Archaic Chinese Jades: Special Exhibition (1940). We know his identity through letters housed in the Department of Archives, The University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archeology and Anthropology, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (see: letter, C. T. Loo to Horace Jayne, 25 October 1939 and letter, from C. T. Loo to Horace Jayne, 16 December 1939, copies in FǀS COM provenance files). The exhibition was entirely organized by C. T. Loo & Company, New York. Letters exchanged between C. T. Loo and the director of The University Museum, Mr. Horace H.F. Jayne, reveal that Zhang Naiji owned the objects and C. T. Loo & Company had the collection on consignment (see: letter, from C. T. Loo to Horace Jayne, 28 May 1939 and letter, from C. T. Loo to Horace Jayne, 23 October 1940, copies on COM provenance files). C. T. Loo & Company kept the jade collection on consignment from 1940 through Zhang’s death in 1948, inventorying the pieces with a prefix “J” and labeling each item as “Chang Collection.”
label: Provenance
content: [3] Zhang Mei Chien, Zhang Naiji’s wife, assumed ownership upon his death in 1948. She sold several pieces from her husband’s collection to both C. T. Loo & Company (later known as C. T. Loo, INC. and then C. T. Loo Chinese Art – see notes 4 and 5) and J. T. Tai & Company. She sold to J. T. Tai & Company in July 1954 (for example, see J. T. Tai & Company Stock Record YT 886 and YT 895, copies in COM provenance files).
label: Provenance
content: [4] See note 3. On September 1, 1952, C. T. Loo’s associate, Frank Caro (1904-1980) took over daily operations of the New York business, operating at C. T. Loo Chinese Art. Loo continued to play a large role in the business, as he and Caro struck a deal in which profits made on Loo’s stock would be evenly divided and Loo would maintain the lease and rental payments on the company’s gallery space.
label: Provenance
content: C. T. Loo Chinese Art kept the same stock number that C. T. Loo & Company assigned it when consigning for ZHANG Naiji: J- 143 (see note 5).
label: Provenance
content: [5] In 1961, Loo and Caro’s agreement ended. C. T. Loo & Cie., Paris, France took control of C. T. Loo Chinese Art, New York’s stock that C. T. Loo had added to the inventory before his death in 1957. Frank Caro then opened Frank Caro Chinese Art. Caro acquired pieces from Loo’s original stock (the mode of acquisition is unknown) and incorporated them into his own stock. Frank Caro Chinese Art continued to use the stock numbers assigned to objects by C. T. Loo Chinese Art.
label: Provenance
content: Frank Caro Chinese Art likely sold this object to Dr. Arthur Sackler.
label: Provenance
content: On August 27 1964, Frank Caro sold Arthur M. Sackler nearly 50 jades that had been in Zhang’s collection amongst several other ancient jades from various other collections. Sackler inventoried these objects with his own numbering system and this object, which Sackler numbered J-568, falls within the group of others purchased this day. It is possible that C. T. Loo & Frank Caro inventoried this object as J-143, “Archaic jade pendent in form of bird. Greenish jade. Western Chou. Lt. 1- 1/8 ins” (see copy of invoice in accession file).
label: Provenance
content: [6] See note 5. This object was part of Arthur M. Sackler’s 1987 foundational gift.
label: Provenance
content: [7] Pursuant to the agreement between Dr. Arthur M. Sackler and the Smithsonian Institution dated July 28, 1982, legal title of the donated objects was transferred to the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery on September 11, 1987.
label: Collection
content: Arthur M. Sackler Collection
label: Exhibition History
content: Archaic Chinese Jades, Special Exhibition (February 1940)
label: Previous custodian or owner
content: Zhang Naiji 張乃驥 (1899-1948)
label: Previous custodian or owner
content: Zhang Mei Chien (1900-1998)
label: Previous custodian or owner
content: C. T. Loo Chinese Art (1953-1961)
label: Previous custodian or owner
content: Frank Caro Chinese Art (1962-1980)
label: Previous custodian or owner
content: Dr. Arthur M. Sackler (1913-1987)
place: label: Origin
content: Anyang, probably Henan province, China
topic: label: Topic
content: carving
label: Topic
content: jade
label: Topic
content: nephrite
label: Topic
content: bird
label: Topic
content: Anyang period, Late Shang dynasty (ca. 1300 - 1050 BCE)
label: Topic
content: China
label: Topic
content: Chinese Art
setName: label: Related Online Resources
content: Google Arts & Culture
label: Related Online Resources
content: Jades for Life and Death
label: See more items in
content: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Collection
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Arthur M. Sackler
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery
identifier: label: Accession Number
content: S1987.559
objectType: label: Type
content: Jewelry and Ornament
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: CC0
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: Jade (nephrite)
label: Dimensions
content: H x W x D: 2.6 x 3 x 0.5 cm (1 x 1 3/16 x 3/16 in)