A JADE PLAQUE LIANGZHU CULTURE, NEOLITHIC PERIOD

the flattened plaque of trapezoidal form, pierced with a large aperture at one end and three smaller apertures at the other, the calcified stone of a creamy-white tone with russet inclusions; together with a Warring States period jade ring of finely twisted rope form, the celadon stone with calcification to the surface and filemot inclusions; and a Western Zhou dynasty bone hair ornament in the form of a bird

Exquisite Jade Carving, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 1996, cat. nos 140 (jade plaque) and 169 (jade ring).

Hairpin: the overall condition is very good. The bone has two small oval fills (6mm) on the side. Ring: the overall condtition is very good. Trapezoid plaque: the plaque has been broken in half and restuck with an old 1cm to the top and a couple of other old minor chips along the side.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

Trapezoid jades are an important ritual jade and distinctive feature of the Liangzhu culture and numerous examples have been unearthed. See a closely related plaque in the Shanghai Museum illustrated in the exhibition catalogue Ritual and Power: Jades of Ancient China, China House Gallery, New York, 1988, p. 21; two examples of squatter form published in Liangzhu wenhua yuqi, Beijing, 1989, pls 110 and 111 and plaques excavated from tombsites illustrated in Jessica Rawson, Chinese Jade from the Neolithic to the Qing, London, 1994, pp. 137-38, figs 1 and 2. Compare also examples of this shape but with two drilled holes included in the exhibition Ritual and Power: Jades of Ancient China, op. cit., cat. no. 68; one sold in our New York rooms, 30th May 1990, lot 1; and another sold at Chrisite's New York, 3rd June 1988, lot 51. Plaques of this shape but decorated with derivations of the taotie mask are also found; for example see four published in Liangzhu wenhua yuqi, op. cit., pls 112-115.

A closely related ring is published in Wang Zhangju, National Treasure Collection of Rare Cultural Relics of Shaanxi Province, Xi'an, 1999, p. 124; and another was sold at Christie's London, 14^th December 1983, lot 528. Compare also two examples in the Fogg Art Museum, Harvard University, included in Max Loehr, Ancient Chinese Jades, Cambridge, Mass., 1975, pls 478 and 479; and two versions in the Simon Kwan collection included in the exhibition Chinese Archaic Jades from the Kwan Collection, Art Gallery, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 1994, cat. nos 172 and 173.

For a bone hairpin with a bird terminal see one sold in our London rooms, 29^th March 1977, lot 40; and compare earlier examples excavated from the tomb of Lady Hao at Yinxu in Anyang province, illustrated in Tomb of Lady Hao at Yinxu in Anyang, Beijing, 1980, pl. CLXXXXI.