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Neolithic figurine 6,000 years old
April 5, 2009, Sunday
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Print Edition
Print Edition
THE Chinese have adored jade -- a range of translucent and opal gemstones -- since the Neolithic Age. While making stone tools, they found jade yield a waxy, lustrous texture after polishing. Its mottled green and other delicate shades of color made it ideal for ornaments and amulets. Gradually, it came to symbolize energy, morality and good virtues.
China's jade culture is more than 7,000 years old and prehistoric jade artifacts have been unearthed in many parts of the country. Shanghai Museum therefore has a large collection of antique jade carvings on display.
One particular exhibit is a jade figurine from Longshan Culture (4350-3950 BC) that existed in the lower reaches of the Yellow River in today's Shandong Province. The 10.3-centimeter-by-3.4-centimeter carving shows a man wearing big earrings, a turban-like headdress and skimpy underwear, with his hands locked in a pose suggestive of praying.
The holes under the arm apparently were for securing the amulet to its owner.
It remains a mystery how the Neolithic people were able to drill tiny holes in jade, which is as hard as quartz, prior to the invention of metal tools.
Even after 6,000 years, the translucent figurine still has a glossy, warm glow as if it was newly created.
Jade has always had a special significance in Chinese culture, roughly comparable to that of gold and diamonds in the West.
It was used not only for the finest objects and cult figures, but also as a symbol of the good, the beautiful and the precious.
China's jade culture is more than 7,000 years old and prehistoric jade artifacts have been unearthed in many parts of the country. Shanghai Museum therefore has a large collection of antique jade carvings on display.
One particular exhibit is a jade figurine from Longshan Culture (4350-3950 BC) that existed in the lower reaches of the Yellow River in today's Shandong Province. The 10.3-centimeter-by-3.4-centimeter carving shows a man wearing big earrings, a turban-like headdress and skimpy underwear, with his hands locked in a pose suggestive of praying.
The holes under the arm apparently were for securing the amulet to its owner.
It remains a mystery how the Neolithic people were able to drill tiny holes in jade, which is as hard as quartz, prior to the invention of metal tools.
Even after 6,000 years, the translucent figurine still has a glossy, warm glow as if it was newly created.
Jade has always had a special significance in Chinese culture, roughly comparable to that of gold and diamonds in the West.
It was used not only for the finest objects and cult figures, but also as a symbol of the good, the beautiful and the precious.
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