Major types of jade of this period include discs with holes and hoof-shaped objects that may have been ornaments worn in the hair. This coiled dragon is an example of another important shape, today known as a 'pig-dragon', which may have been derived from the slit ring, or jue. Many jade artefacts that survive from this period were used as pendants and some seem to have been attached to clothing or to the body.
Jade Figure of a Crouching Animal
Han dynasty (206 BC- AD 220)
The people of the Han dynasty (206 BC - AD 220) believed that animals, both real and mythical, provided contact with the spirit world. Some might avert evil, bring good luck or appear when auspicious events were about to occur. Emperors and officials lined the approaches to their tombs with large carved stone animals that would enlist supernatural help to protect them in the Afterlife. Animal carvings in jade were believed to be especially powerful, as the material was associated with the immortals because of its translucency, colour and indestructible quality.
The carver of this piece has taken advantage of a narrow oval pebble to show a creature prowling, menacing the viewer, with its horned head low near the ground. The general character of the artefact comes close to, but is not identical with that of a bixie found with four other creatures at Xianyang near present-day Xi'an, and dated to the Han period. These were discovered near Weiling, the tomb of the Han emperor Yuandi (reigned 48-33 BC). Like these other pieces, this jade is a product of Han interest in the strange and miraculous creatures that they deemed to be portents and omens.
Wuzhu Coin Issued By Emperor Xuandi
China's most successful coin
Western Han dynasty, 73-47 BC
The inscription on this coin reads 'wuzhu', with 'wu' to the right of the hole, and 'zhu' to the left of the hole. Wuzhu means 'five grains', and refers to the weight of the coin (1 wuzhu = 5 grains = 4 grams). By coincidence, the size and weight of the wuzhu coin was the same as the Greek drachma and the Roman denarius.
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