Neolithic Chinese Liangzhu Jade Temple Amulet with 4 Dragons and Taotie Monster!

Description

ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS
Artifacts, Antiques & Fine Collect
i
bles
Neolithic Chinese Four Dragon Jade Temple Amulet
Mythical Monster
Taotie
Incised Pictograph
c. Liangzh
u Culture
3500 BC—2100 BC
“A Dragon can be unseen or visible, minute or huge,
long or short.  However, always it is great.”
—Shuo Wen (c. 100 AD)
NOTE:
William D. Houghton, the President of ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS
, a State of Washington Licensed Business,
assumes all responsibility for the information contained in this description and for the English translation and transcription of the ancient Chinese graphic characters.
Furthermore, I prohibit the further dissemination of this information in any written, video, or electronic format without my expressed, written approval.
Thank You!
SUMMARY
Item:
Neolithic Chinese Four Dragon Jade Temple Amulet/Pendant with Mythical Monster Taotie
Material:
Highly polished nephrite jade
Culture:
Liangzhu Culture
Date:
3500 BC—2200 BC
Measurements:
·
Height:
2.19” (56mm)
·
Width:
4.24” (108mm)
·
Depth:
.40” (10mm)
·
Weight:
4.3 oz. (122gr.)
Condition:
This nephrite jade, Liangzhu Culture plaque is in museum quality condition.
The olive-green jade has turned an amazing shade of orange/brown from the iron and other elements in the damp soil that have been absorbed into the jade after being buried for thousands of years.
This patina should not be removed, because the natural patina is one way to identify an authentic Liangzhu jade.
It has common, surface jade fissures, but it does not appear to have been repaired or restored and does not affect the condition or value.
Two, small sections of the orange/brown patina have been removed by polishing on both sides by the previous collector in China; this exposes the original, olive-green color of the nephrite jade.
Provenance: This amulet/pendant/plaque is one of several pendants that were obtained from a private collector in China.
These items were first purchased by the private collector’s father in approximately 1998 from an old private collection in China in Zhejiang Province, China. I believe these pendants would have been included in an Emperor’s tomb or temple to provide him a safe journey and eternal life in Heaven.
These pendants have for many years been in this author’s private collection in the State of Washington.
This is the first time it has been offered for sale in the United States.
This 4.24” (108mm) wide amulet is rectangle shaped with four, inward curved angles.
The amulet is shaped this way because this was the shape of the sacred niche in the temple of the deceased from where the transcendent influence is supposed to emanate that will carry the soul of the departed to eternal life in Heaven (
Tien
in Chinese).
There are two suspension holes near the middle of the amulet on the short ends of the rectangle-shaped amulet.
The holes are period correct and drilled by hand from both sides.
Carved into both sides of the amulet on each of the four edges are the heads of four Imperial Dragons with large eyes looking with benevolence upon the offerings presented by the family of the departed to the Ancestors.
These Dragons verify that this man held a high-level position in the Emperor’s court, as no ordinary old man would have dared to have an Imperial Dragon on a piece of jade that would have been placed in the Emperor’s tomb or in his temple.
Located at the center of this amulet/plaque on the front (obverse) side is the image of a
Taotie
, a fierce, mythical creature that was thought to scare away evil spirits that were thought to lurk everywhere and could prevent the soul of the departed from reaching immortality in Heaven.
NOTE:
The items offered for sale by Ancient Civilizations are unconditionally guaranteed authentic. They were legally imported to the United States years ago and are legal to sell and own under U.S. Statute Title 19, Chapter 14, Code 2611, Convention on Cultural Property.
DETAILS
This lovely jade pendant dates to the Neolithic Chinese people known as the Liangzhu Culture (3500 BC—2100 BC.)
The Liangzhu are believed to have been the first people in China to ever use jade as a marker of social status—and this jade pendant with four dragons and a ferocious, mythical beast called a
Taotie
, is an awesome example, as all three beasts served as a protective amulet against Evil Spirits that could prevent the man’s soul from reaching immortality in Heaven.
The Immortal Mythical Beast—
Taotie
Located at the center of this amulet/plaque is the image of the
Taotie
, a fierce, mythical creature that was thought to scare away evil spirits.
He is prominently featured on the center, front of the amulet
(see macro photo # 2),
with his nose in the center, two large circular eyes, and a rectangle shaped mouth that is ready to devour any Evil Spirits that might prevent the soul of this man from reaching his ancestors in Heaven.
His oversized round eyes and horizontal mouth have been incised into the hard jade with the finest of cut lines and are utterly amazing.
Some experts suggest that a diamond or even an iron meteorite awl was used by the Neolithic stone masons to make these ultra-thin cut lines, as Neolithic cultures did not have iron tools to incise the extremely hard jade.
The pendant appears to have several pictograms that were painted in black, mineral pigment colors onto the highly-polished surface of the old sage when it was made and dedicated to him millennia ago.
However, the pictograms have faded or blurred, and I cannot see the images clearly enough to identify and to translate them. There does appear to be a painted Dragon on one side.
As noted above, this pendant has two suspension holes on the very top that also represent the eyes of the two Dragons.
Archaeologists classify these holes as “cone-shaped holes,” which were one of the common types of holes made during the Liangzhu Culture.
It was necessary to drill from both sides with a hollow, bamboo or animal bone that would be dipped into abrasive and then rotated rapidly against the stone to affect a ring-form type of hole, leaving the solid core intact.
Therefore, the meeting place of the two borings is not true to a single, straight channel and a curved remnant ridge that is not ground or polished-out remains at the common junction.
The center core was often snapped off by tapping or pushing the center core to one side and thus completing the long hole.
We are able to see how these suspension holes were made by looking at the eyes of the four dragons on each corner.
If the cut lines made for the eyes were cut deeper, you can see how the center core could be snapped off and thus completing a hole.
Then entire pendant is defined by precise incision lines and plain modeling, with a slightly convex shape on the front and a flat side on the back.
It presents a powerful image of protection in the afterlife and one meant only for the royal class.
Dragon Symbolism in China
In China, the Dragon (in Chinese “
Long
”) has for millennia been the symbol of the Emperor, the Son of Heaven, eternity, Yang and Yin, as well as for male vigor and fertility.
The Dragon is considered as one of the 12 Ornaments and one of the most comp00lex and multi-tiered Chinese symbols. The Chinese dragon can fiercely protect one from Evil Spirits and harm.
The nine major characteristics of a lung-type dragon include a camel-like head, deer-like horns, hare-like eyes, bull-like ears, an iguana-like neck, a frog-like belly, carp-like scales, tiger-like paws and eagle-like claws.
This bronze dragon has a pair of large canine teeth and long, tendril-like whiskers extending from either side of its mouth that were thought to be used for feeling its way along the bottom of muddy ponds.
In China, the dragon is credited with having great powers that allowed it to make rain and control floods by striking the river with its mighty tail, for example.
Dragons are also revered for their ability to transport humans to the celestial realms after death.
They are symbols of the natural world, adaptability, and transformation to immortal status. When two dragons are placed together in opposite directions, they symbolize eternity, i.e., the famous Yin-Yang symbol.
Chinese emperors literally thought they were the real dragons and Sons of Heaven. Thus, the beds they slept on are called "dragon beds;" the throne, a "dragon seat;" and the emperor's ceremonial dresses are known as "dragon robes."
In the minds of the early Chinese people, the dragon was a god that embodied the will and ideals of the Chinese people. It is said that the dragon is a large-scaled reptile, which can become dark or bright, large or small, long or short, and fly into the sky in the spring and live underwater in the fall.
It seems that the dragon is capable of doing almost anything.
Traditionally, the dragons were considered the governors of rainfalls in Chinese culture. They had the power to decide where and when it would rain. They also believed kings of water dragons lived in dragon palaces under the ocean. The Chinese sign for the dragon appeared during the Yin and Shang dynasties (16th-11th century BC -- the period of the earliest Chinese hieroglyphs), between inscriptions on bones and turtle shields. The inscriptions depicted a horned reptile, with teeth, scales and sometimes even claws.
In ancient China, nobody had any doubt about the existence of dragons. People showed great respect for any depictions of dragons -- in paintings, carvings, and writings. As a result, the dragon became the symbol of the Chinese nation. All people in China, including the emperor, prostrated themselves before the image of a dragon with reverence and awe. As a result, this fictional creature became the spiritual sustenance for the nation first as the totem of a tribe and then as the symbol of the nation. Eventually, the dragon became the symbol on the national flag of the last feudal dynasty, the Qing Dynasty. The Chinese people considered themselves the descendants of the dragon.
As the emblem of the emperor and imperial command, the legend of the Chinese dragon permeates the ancient Chinese civilization and has shaped its culture. Its benevolence signifies greatness, goodness and blessings.
REFERENCES:
•
The Ancestral Landscape
, David N. Knightley, 2000
•
Chinese Characters
, Dr. L. Wieger, S.J.
•
Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC
•
Archaeology, Archaeological Institute of America, Feb/March 2015
•
Shanghai Museum, China
•
Museum of Chinese History, Beijing, China
•
National Palace Museum, Taipei, Taiwan
•
British Museum, UK
•
Smithsonian Museum, Sackler & Freer Gallery, WDC
Please examine the macro photos carefully as they are part of the description.
The stand is not part of the auction, just included to give you a better perspective.
And please ask any questions before you buy.
International Buyers are responsible for all import duties, import taxes, shipping charges and insurance costs.
International Returns are
NOT
accepted.
Note:
Please ask any questions you may have before you bid!  Thanks for Looking!