A CELADON AND BROWN JADE ORNAMENT, HENG WESTERN HAN DYNASTY

of arched form, carved to both sides with the 'grain' pattern, the edges with rectangular notches, the stone of a variegated pale celadon and sugar-brown colour

This greenish white jade is suffused with light brownish yellow, in part is marked by chicken-bone white calcification, is so polished and smooth it has the lustre of glass, though it also shows light staining indicating it had been recently unearthed. The piece has raised lip edging, and both sides are covered with a fine grain design. In its outer edge there are several pairs of symmetrical notches, and a small hole has been pieced from the back. Similar heng were excavated from the mausoleum of the Prince of Chu at Shizishan, Xuzhou, Jiangsu Province; see Gu Fang, Zhongguo chutu yuqi quanji [The Complete Collection of Jades Unearthed in China], vol. 7, Beijing, 2005, pp. 118-120.