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Jades in the Laufer collection
Jades in the Laufer collection
The Laufer collection’s jade subcollection consists of almost 300 objects, collected during Laufer’s Blackstone and Marshall Field Expeditions to Tibet and China. This subcollection of jades is one of two major sources for the Field Museum’s extensive jade collection, many of which can still be seen today in the Elizabeth Hubert Malott Hall of Jades. The other source of jades in the Field Museum’s collection comes from a collection formed in the 1910s by A.W. Bahr, that was purchased and donated to the Field Museum in 1926.[1]
The bulk of jade objects in the Laufer subcollection were acquired during Laufer’s 1908-1910 Mrs. T.B. Blackstone Expedition to China and Tibet, during which he collected a little over 200 jades. The variety of jades collected during this expedition is enormous, ranging from Neolithic bi and cong to elaborately carved animal figurines, dishes, grave ornaments, and snuff bottles. Many of these objects were collected from Xi’an, with a few collected from Chengdu. In 1923, Laufer acquired a smaller number of jade objects for the Field Museum during the Captain Marshall Field Expedition to China. A similarly wide variety of jades were collected in this expedition, including items such as jade belt hooks, snuff bottles, axes, dragon ornaments, and more. These objects were collected primarily from Beijing and Shanghai, with some objects collected from other locations such as Suzhou and Guangzhou.
Jade has historically been highly valued in China, on par with gold or diamonds in the West. The name jade refers to both nephrite and jadeite, two minerals that look and feel similar, but that have different chemical compositions and structures.[2] Historically, the jade used in China was most often nephrite.[3] Jade continues to be extremely popular in China today, to the point where modern demand for jade is driven almost entirely by Chinese demand.[4] The Laufer subcollection illustrates this historical love of jade, containing a wide variety of jade objects, dated across the wide expanse of Chinese history. As the jade subcollection is too large to describe in its entirety, only a select number of jade object types are described in the following paragraphs.
[1] Dubrow and Ho, “The Museum’s Chinese Jades,” In the Field, vol. 66, no. 5:10, https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/124925#page/12/mode/1up.
[2] Encyclopaedia Britannica, s.v. “jade,” last modified October 13, 2019, https://www.britannica.com/topic/jade-gemstone.
[3] Encyclopaedia Britannica, s.v. “Chinese jade,” last modified April 24, 2014, https://www.britannica.com/art/Chinese-jade.
[4] Tim McDonald, “Why this green stone can be worth more than gold,” BBC Worklife, May 19, 2016, https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20160511-why-this-green-stone-can-be-worth-more-than-gold.
Ritual jades
Ritual jades
The Laufer subcollection of jades has several ritual Chinese jades, namely the bi and cong types. Ritual jades, of which there are six types, were named and listed in the Zhouli (Rites of Zhou), an ancient text that is considered a record of rituals from the Zhou court (1046-256 B.C.E.).[1] Although comparing the Zhouli to archaeological evidence “suggests that the text is more a synthesizing work than a faithful record of Zhou dynasty ritual practices,” the text has nonetheless been useful for identifying ritual objects and practices of the Zhou dynasty.[2]
Figure 1. Jade bi; © The Field Museum - CC BY-NC, A115108d_003C, Catalog No. 116577, Photographer John Weinstein
Bi, an example of which can be seen in Figure 1, are jade disks with small holes in the center. Bi vary in size, thickness, and quality, with these conditions appearing to determine where in the tomb they would be placed. Bi would be placed on and near a deceased individual’s body for burial—a small number of higher-quality, fine bi would be placed near the stomach, and a larger number of lower-quality, coarser bi would be placed near the feet.[3] Bi first appeared in the Neolithic era (ca. 6000-c. 1700 B.C.) in tombs belonging to the Liangzhu culture, a group of peoples who lived between 3000 and 2000 B.C.E. in the eastern coastal areas of China that are now Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces. Bi continued to be used into the Shang (1600-1046 B.C.E.) and Western Zhou (1046-771 B.C.E.) periods, but in fewer numbers. The Eastern Zhou dynasty (770-256 B.C.E.) saw a resurgence in the use of bi. Bi continued to be used until the end of the Han period (206 B.C.E.-220 C.E.), and have been found in Han royal tombs, possibly copied from tombs of the Neolithic Liangzhu culture that happened to be found and excavated during that period.[4] [5] Apart from being a type of burial object throughout these various eras, bi were supposedly also used during the Zhou dynasty as “an object held by fourth- and fifth-rank nobles at gatherings.”[6]
[1] Ming Wilson, Chinese Jades (London: V & A, 2004), 13.
[2] Ibid., 19.
[3] Ibid., 13.
[4] James C.S. Lin, The Immortal Stone: Chinese Jades From the Neolithic Period to the Twentieth Century (London: Scala, 2009), 40.
[5] Jessica Rawson, Chinese Jade: From the Neolithic to the Qing (London: British Museum Press, 1995), 247.
[6] Wilson, Chinese Jades, 14.
The second type of ritual jade in the Laufer subcollection is the cong, a square tube with a cylindrical hole in the center, an example of which can be seen in Figure 2. Cong ranged from 49.5 centimeters and 3 centimeters long, and frequently had a “humanoid motif” carved into their exterior.[1] Many cong have been found in Liangzhu tombs, but during the Zhou dynasty cong decreased in quantity, and by the tenth century B.C.E. cong were seemingly no longer made at all.[2] The Zhouli claims that cong were a “ritual vessel for sacrificing to the Earth,” and the existence of cong in Liangzhu tombs seem to indicate some type of ritual significance or social status, but the specific purpose of Liangzhu cong remains unclear.[3] Liangzhu cong have also been found placed between the legs of bodies in male Western Zhou and Han tombs, and it is thought that these cong were used by Western Zhou and Han peoples as a genital box, as part of the jade burial suit many royal figures were buried in.[4]
[1] Wilson, Chinese Jades, 14.
[2] Ibid.,15.
[3] Ibid.
[4] Lin, The Immortal Stone, 17-18.
Figure 2. Jade cong; © The Field Museum - CC BY-NC, A98366, Catalog No. 183174
Figure 3. Jade axe blade, likely from the Zhou period; © The Field Museum - CC BY-NC, CSA35879, Catalog No. 116503
There are other ritual jades from the Zhou and Neolithic periods of China that go unmentioned in the Zhouli’s list of six ritual jades. Axe and knife blades are another type of ritual jade that were common during the Neolithic and Zhou periods.[1] Examples of these objects in the Laufer subcollection of jades can be seen in Figure 3. Jade axe blades, mostly found in the tombs of men, have been excavated from Neolithic Liangzhu tombs. These were likely ritual or ceremonial objects, especially as the effort needed to carve jade in Neolithic times was significant.[2] Jade knife blades were another Neolithic object that likely symbolized power and authority, as jade knife blades would have been too brittle to use as a weapon or for chopping wood. Although few have been found in Neolithic Liangzhu tombs, many have been found in the Neolithic excavation site of Shimao in present-day Shaanxi province.[3] Tombs in Tianma Qucun, an archaeological site in Shaanxi province dated to the Western Zhou period, had jade axes, adzes, and chisels only in male tombs, indicating some type of gender differential in the use of these jade objects in tombs.[4]
[1] Wilson, Chinese Jades, 19.
[2] Ibid.
[3] Ibid.
[4] Lin, The Immortal Stone, 28.
Non-ritual jades
Non-ritual jades
Belt hooks, and later on, belt buckles, are a more secular type of jade ornament found in the Laufer collections. Jade belt hooks were originally primarily practical items used to fasten or tighten belts, and were most common during the Eastern Zhou dynasty (770-256 B.C.E.).[1] Several jade hooks have been found at a Liangzhu site, dating such jade belt hooks to the Neolithic era.[2] During the Northern Song dynasty (960-1127 C.E.), ancient jade belt hooks became a collector’s item for scholars, and were used for a variety of non-belt-related functions, both decorative and practical, such as for hanging scrolls.[3] Jade belt buckles, an example of which can be seen in Figure 5, were the successors of the jade belt hooks. Lacking the luster of antiquity that jade belt hooks had, these buckles were prized primarily for their fine artistry and value.[4] Jade belt buckle plaques were also marks of social status, based on their intricate decorations and the inherent value of jade.[5]
[1] Wilson, Chinese Jades, 33.
[2] Ibid., 29.
[3] Ibid., 33.
[4] Ibid., 33-35.
[5] Lin, The Immortal Stone, 77.
Figure 6. Jade dragon ornaments; © The Field Museum - CC BY-NC, CSA74364, Catalog No. 127343, 183188, 183189
Figure 4. Jade belt hook; © The Field Museum - CC BY-NC, EX2015_1a_116565_ReferenceImage, Catalog No. 116565, Photographer Michelle Burton
Figure 5. Jade belt buckle; © The Field Museum - CC BY-NC, CSA74335, Catalog No. 125916
Jade pendants and ornaments are a common object type in the Laufer jade subcollection. Dragon motifs on jade ornaments and pendants were especially popular, as dragons in China are symbols of strength and good luck. The first jade dragon found has been dated to 3500 B.C.E., and the motif continued to be popular into the twentieth century.[1] Examples of these jade dragon ornaments in the Laufer collections can be seen in Figure 6. Jade rings and pendants are mentioned as part of official court dress codes in records dated to the Han, Sui, and Song dynasties, and jade pendants were common among the general populace for good luck.[2]
[1] Wilson, Chinese Jades, 24.
[2] Ibid., 26.
Jade animal figurines
Jade animal figurines
Figure 8. Jade animal figurines of horse, goats, elephant, monkey; © The Field Museum - CC BY-NC, CSA35463, Catalog No. 116594, 116595, 116596, 116597
Jade figurines of animals compose another component of the Laufer jade subcollection. In China, the first jade figurines of animals were found in present-day Liaoning province and were dated to roughly 3500 B.C.E.[1] Although unclear, it is thought that these jade figurines had religious or ritual meaning.[2] During the Shang period, pendants shaped like animals such as fish, tigers, deer, cicadas, silkworms, and various birds were common objects in tombs. Moreover, several of these animal shapes, “such as fish and birds, were continuously produced or reused throughout the following Western Zhou period [c. 1050-771 B.C.E.].”[3] Until approximately the Six Dynasties period (265-589 C.E.), jade animals were buried in the tombs of wealthy individuals. Past that point, jade animals continued to be more popular for secular reasons.[4] Jade animal figurines continued to be a popular object in the Han dynasty (206 B.C.E.-220 C.E.). A popular subject of these jade animal figurines—and broader Chinese art—are horses. They first appeared as a subject in the Han and Tang periods (618-907 C.E), when Chinese peoples came into contact with the nomadic tribes in the north.[5] Another common subject of jade figurines are elephants, the Mandarin word for which is pronounced similarly to the word for ‘auspicious.’ The elephant is thus considered a good omen.[6] Mandarin ducks, another common subject, are a symbol of marital fidelity and happiness, due to the idea that mandarin ducks are couples for life. The Laufer collection also contains a few jade figurines of mythical animals—one example is the pixiu, which has the head of a dragon and body of a lion, and is a symbol of good fortune and wealth.
[1] Wilson, Chinese Jades, 66.
[2] Ibid.
[3] Lin, The Immortal Stone, 25.
[4] “Elizabeth Hubert Malott Hall of Jades,” The Field Museum, accessed July 22, 2021, https://www.fieldmuseum.org/exhibitions/elizabeth-hubert-malott-hall-jades.
[5] Lin, The Immortal Stone, 51.
[6] Ibid., 53.
Figure 7. Jade carving of a pair of mandarin ducks; © The Field Museum - CC BY-NC, CSA74164, Catalog No. 116602
Figure 9. Jade figurine of Chinese mythical animal pixiu; © The Field Museum - CC BY-NC, A101834c, Catalog No. 116600
Miscellaneous jades in the Laufer subcollection
Miscellaneous jades in the Laufer subcollection
Figure 10. Jade wine cup with carved plum tree and hydras; © The Field Museum - CC BY-NC, A101668c, Catalog No. 116616
[1] Wilson, Chinese Jades, 36.
[2] Ibid.
[3] Lin, The Immortal Stone, 74.
Jade dishes and vessels are another category of jade objects in the Laufer subcollection. Jade dishes and vessels were rare in early China, particularly as the amount of jade necessary to carve out entire bowls, cups, or plates would have been wasteful, but from the Han dynasty onwards, jade dishes became common and popular.[1] From the Tang dynasty and onwards, jade dishes were a symbol of wealth for the individuals and families that owned them.[2] Jade dishes could be simple, or involve complex and delicate designs. Delicate floral carvings on jade cups were a popular design during the Ming dynasty.[3] Figure 10 shows an elaborately decorated and carved wine cup. The beauty of such a vessel, coupled with its impracticality in holding, suggests that this vessel and others like it were primarily ornaments or used for purposes other than drinking and eating, possibly to impress viewers and illustrate the owner’s taste and wealth.
Figure 11. Jade cicada grave ornament; © The Field Museum - CC BY-NC, 116531_Dorsal1, Catalog No. 116531, Photographer Jamie Kelly
[1] Lin, The Immortal Stone, 48.
[2] Ibid., 11.
[3] Ibid.
[4] Dubrow and Ho, “The Museum’s Chinese Jades,” 10.
[5] Ibid.
[6] Lin, The Immortal Stone, 39.
[7] Ibid., 40.
[8] Ibid., 12.
Jade objects were also commonly used as funerary objects, intended to be buried with the deceased as a form of protection and comfort.[1] In the Han dynasty (206 B.C.E.-220 C.E.) especially, jade objects were a standard part of burials.[2] In imperial tombs that have been excavated, bi have been found on and around the deceased’s body, along with jade plugs inserted into bodily orifices, and a jade suite made from jade plaques that encased the body. [3] Jade plugs inserted into bodily orifices were intended to prevent decomposition of the body.[4] Cicada-shaped jade objects were one of the most popular forms of these funerary jades, an example of which you can see in Figure 11.[5] During the Han dynasty, cicada-shaped jades were often placed in the mouth of the deceased individual, possibly as a symbol of rebirth.[6] It was thought that these jade objects would prevent evil spirits or demons from entering the body of the deceased and causing decay or other harm.[7] More broadly, in the Han period, jade was believed to have some type of magical power to deter ghosts and evil. Jade objects in tombs were intended to “ward off demons and protect the tomb occupant from attack in the afterlife.”[8]
Figure 12. Jade snuff bottle; © The Field Museum - CC BY-NC, a108372_126541c, Catalog No. 126541, Photographer William C. Bentley
[1] Lin, The Immortal Stone, 83.
Snuff bottles, which contained snuff, a powdered form of tobacco, are another category of jade object in the Laufer collections. Elaborately carved and decorated snuff bottles became popular during the eighteenth century in China. Snuff and the accompanying snuff-bottles were common during the Qing period among all social classes, including the imperial family.[1] An example of a snuff bottle in the Laufer collections can be seen in Figure 12. Although snuff bottles were made of many different types of materials, jade snuff bottles were likely reserved for the elite, due to the value of jade.
Laufer & jades at the field museum
Laufer & jades at the field museum
The collection of jade objects at the Field Museum, along with Laufer’s 1912 volume on the collection, were one Laufer’s proudest accomplishments. His 1912 volume “Jade: A Study in Chinese Archaeology and Religion,” was one of the earliest English-language texts on the subject of jade in China.[1] This text, along with Laufer’s expertise in the subject, made him one of the most renowned and respected Western scholars on the subject, leading private collectors and other scholars to seek him out. “Jade: A Study in Chinese Archaeology and Religion,” as Laufer writes in its introduction, was “written, in the first place, to furnish the necessary information on the jade collection in the Field Museum,” and discusses many of the jade objects collected by Laufer during his 1923 T.B. Blackstone Expedition.[2] “Jade: A Study in Chinese Archaeology and Religion,” is over 300 pages and discusses in detail many of the jade objects in the Laufer collections of the Field Museum. Those who are interested in the text can read it here.
[1] Dubrow and Ho, “The Museum’s Chinese Jades,” 10.
[2] Berthold Laufer, “Jade: A Study in Chinese Archaeology and Religion,” Anthropological Series, vol. X: 1.
by Aiko Johnston
References
References
Erickson, Susan N. “The Shield-Shaped Jade Pendant: A Singular Han-Dynasty Type and Its Later Revivals.” Archives of Asian Art, vol. 68, no. 2, Duke University Press, 2018, pp. 157–90, doi:10.1215/00666637-7162237.
DuBrow, Paul, and Chumei Ho. “The Museum’s Chinese Jades.” In the Field, vol. 66, no. 5 (1995), https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/124925#page/12/mode/1up
Field Museum. “Elizabeth Hubert Malott Hall of Jades.” Accessed July 22, 2021. https://www.fieldmuseum.org/exhibitions/elizabeth-hubert-malott-hall-jades
Laufer, Berthold. “Jade: A Study in Chinese Archaeology and Religion.” Anthropological Series, vol. X (1912). https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/ia/jadestudyinchine10lauf/#page/9/mode/1up
Lin, James C. S. The Immortal Stone: Chinese Jades From the Neolithic Period to the Twentieth Century. London: Scala, 2009.
McDonald, Tim. “Why this green stone can be worth more than gold.” BBC Worklife, May 19, 2016. https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20160511-why-this-green-stone-can-be-worth-more-than-gold.
Rawson, Jessica. Chinese Jade: From the Neolithic to the Qing. London: British Museum Press, 1995.
Wilson, Ming. Chinese Jades. London: V & A, 2004.
Yuhas, Louis. “Jade in Chinese Culture.” Field Museum of Natural History Bulletin, vol. 42, no. 10 (1971), https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/item/21712#page/196/mode/1up
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