† A RARE MINERALIZED JADE ‘DRAGON’ PENDANT, LATE NEOLITHIC PERIOD, HONGSHAN CULTURE

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† A RARE MINERALIZED JADE ‘DRAGON’ PENDANT, LATE NEOLITHIC PERIOD, HONGSHAN CULTURE Expert authentication: Dr. Gu Fang has examined the present lot and confirms its authenticity and the dating above, noting the style of cutting, workmanship, thickness, and quality of stone with decomposed areas indicating burial, all suggesting a dating to 4700-2500 BC. He assessed it as a piece of notably good quality. A signed copy of Dr. Gu's expertise, dated 24 March 2017, accompanies this lot. Dr. Gu Fang (born 1962) is an internationally renowned scholar of Chinese art and a leading authority on jades. He graduated from the Department of Archaeology at the prestigious Beijing University in 1986 and later studied at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences (CASS), where he now serves as a Senior Fellow specializing in archaeological excavations and Chinese jade research. A former visiting scholar at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, he has authored several books on Chinese jades, including the 15-volume The Complete Collection of Jades Unearthed in China (2007), one of the most comprehensive studies of its kind, as well as Chinese Jade: The Spiritual and Cultural Significance of Jade in China (2012). Northeastern China, Inner Mongolia, 4700-2500 BC. Boldly carved from a flattened, rounded pebble, with a circular central perforation and a rectangular projection extending from the edge of the stone, with subtle striations visible along one side. The upper section further pierced for suspension. The opaque stone displays a creamy white hue, resulting from prolonged mineralization over millennia of burial. Dimensions: Length 6.2 cm The unusual form of the present jade carving, almost certainly fashioned from one of the water-worn pebbles commonly found in the basin of the West Liao River, which traverses present-day Inner Mongolia and Liaoning Province, the heartland of the Hongshan culture, recalls related jade artefacts recovered from the same region. These early examples are typically distinguished only by a single central circular perforation [Fig. 1], reflecting the experimental lapidary techniques employed by early craftsmen. Such perforations were produced through the laborious use of narrow bamboo or bone tubes in combination with locally available abrasive materials to gradually erode the jade. Given the exceptional hardness of nephrite, approximately 6–7 on the Mohs scale, this drilling process required considerable skill, precision, and time. At the same time, the present artefact exhibits notable formal affinities with the well-known pig-dragon pendants characteristic of the Hongshan culture [Fig. 2]. It may therefore represent either an early developmental stage in the evolution of this iconic form or a stylistic variant that departs from the canonical morphology of later Hongshan carvings. Literature comparison: Compare a related jade square object, China, Hongshan culture, 4700-2500 BC, 11.5 cm long, excavated from Tomb No. 79-2 at the 16th location within Niuheliang site, Chaoyang, Liaoning Province, now held by the Liaoning Provincial Museum, and illustrated in Gu Fang, The Complete Collection of Jades Unearthed in China, vol. 2, 2007, p.144. Compare a related jade ‘coiled dragon’ pendant, China, Hongshan culture, 4700-2500 BC, 5.5 cm long, excavated from Nasitai site, Balinyouqi, Inner Mongolian Autonomous Region, now held by the Balinyouqi Museum, and illustrated in Gu Fang, The Complete Collection of Jades Unearthed in China, vol. 2, 2007, p. 25. Auction result comparison: Type: Related Auction: Christie’s Paris, 8 December 2021, lot 221 Price: EUR 10,000 or approx. EUR 12,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Expert remark: Compare the related form and manner of carving. Note the different color of the stone and smaller size (4.5 cm). 13% VAT will be added to the hammer price additional to the buyer's premium - only for buyers within the EU. 13% VAT will be added to the hammer price additional to the buyer's premium - only for buyers within the EU.

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