Rare Grande Hache Cérémonielle en jade époque Néolithique, culture Longshan, ca. 2000-1500 avant J.-C.

de forme rectangulaire, les côtés évasés dans la partie basse, les côtés tranchants arrondis dans le haut et dans le bas en partie arrondis et en partie pointus et très fins, le sommet légèrement arqué au rebord arrondi, chacun des deux rebords latéraux légèrement concaves, la partie supérieure flanquée d'une série de trois très légers crans de chaque côté, percée en son centre à proximité du bord supérieur, la pierre opaque au doux poli d'une belle teinte chaude couleur chamois avec des taches et des lignes plus foncées, une face couverte d'incrustations, D.W 3289

Arts de La Chine Ancienne, Musée de l’Orangerie, Paris, 1937, no. 73.

Georges Salles, Arts de La Chine Ancienne, Paris, 1937, cat. no. 73 (not illustrated). 

The blade is in overall very good condition with the exception of a ca. 1,5x1cm large triangular piece that is broken out of the right hand side of the blade (visible in the catalogue illustration), and a ca. 1cm wide piece missing from the upper right hand corner (also visible in the catalogue illustration). It is very finely and thinly carved with cutting marks above the aperture. Both sides are well-polished. The edges are very thin, the lower left and right corners rounded and polished, one with a semicircular indentation. There are very fine low notches on the upper left and right hand side. There is a ca. 2cm wide shallow old chip to the upper edge of the blade (visible in the catalogue illustration). On side of the blade shows traces of pale calcified encrustation.
"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."

Large and imposing jade blades, thinly cut and carved of opaque greenish-brown stones with smoothly polished surfaces such as the present piece from the David-Weill Collection, are generally associated with the neolithic Dawenkou and Longshan cultures of eastern China, compare examples illustrated in Kaogu xuebao 1964. 2, pls. 5:2 and 11:1. However, small projections and notches carved on either side of this fine blade are considered to be a feature that appears only on jade blades of the Longshan culture, see Jessica Rawson, Chinese Jade from the Neolithic to the Qing, London, 1995, pp. 167-176, cat. nos. 10:12 and 10:13.

The present blade was acquired in 1932. The Longshan site at Chengziyai, Shandong, was first excavated by Wu Jinding in 1928 and 1930-31. Over 2000 sites in Shandong are linked to the Longshan culture and it is quite likely that the present blade was discovered at the time of the first excavations.

A number of similar blades though of smaller size, are known, see, for example, four blades from the Sonnenschein Collection, illustrated in Alfred Salmony, Archaic Chinese Jades from the Edward and Louise B. Sonnenschein Collection, Chicago, 1952, XXIV:1-4; compare another large jade blade published by Howard Hansford, Chinese Carved Jades, London, 1968, pl. 17a, and H. F. W. Visser, Asiatic Art in Private Collections of Holland and Belgium, Amsterdam, 1948, pl. 54, nos. 90 and 91. A second, even larger jade blade from the David-Weill Collection, probably also of Longshan origin, is illustrated in Georges Salles, Arts de la Chine Ancienne, Paris, 1937, cat. no. 71.