A RARE NEOLITHIC PALE GREEN JADE CURVED AND RIBBED ORNAMENT Hongshan culture, circa 3500-3000 BCE

A RARE NEOLITHIC PALE GREEN JADE CURVED AND RIBBED ORNAMENT
Hongshan culture, circa 3500-3000 BCE
Probably an arm ornament, of C-shaped profile, the trapezoidal underside plain and the arched outer surface with six wide channels divided by vertical ribs, the narrow end of the curling ornament with two small, pierced holes and the wider upper section finished with two crescents, the tips of which have small areas of russet-toned inclusions.
4 1/4in high; 3 1/2in at the widest end and 2 5/8in at the narrow end (10.8cm x 8.9cm x 6.6cm)
Footnotes:
新石器時代 紅山文化 珍罕青玉冠形飾

Provenance:
James Freeman, 1998

來源：
James Freeman舊藏，1998年

It is extremely rare to see a piece of Hongshan jade carving of this quality and size. The choice of the stone and the execution of this brilliant form exemplifies the sophistication of Hongshan jades.

Compare the shield-form jade ornament, similarly curved and ribbed, excavated from the Niuheliang site, illustrated by Xiaoneng Yang (ed), The Golden Age of Chinese Archaeology: Celebrated Discoveries from the People's Republic of China, Washington, 1999, p. 94, no. 19, noted by the author that 'more recent publication places it on the tomb occupant's upper arm.'

Compare also the curved and ribbed ornament from the Winthrop Collection, now in the collection of the Harvard Art Museum, illustrated by Jenny F. So in Early Chinese Jades in the Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, 2019, pp. 74-75, no. 1, with an enlarged photo on p. 16. The attribution of the Harvard example became possible because of the excavations of the Niuheliang site (3500-3000 BCE), a burial and sacrificial center in the late Hongshan period, well-preserved with a rich variety of artifacts. So further noted, op. cit., 'Objects made with this fine-grained nephrite are rare, even in early northeastern contexts.'
Condition Report: PLEASE NOTE: This report describes, but may not be limited to, major condition issues for the lot. In excellent original condition with no break and no restoration. Old blemishes to edges and corners but not interfering with viewing. Russet brown to the tips are original to the stone. Minor surface ware. A very rare example of this type of Hongshan jade. Very thinly carved and skillfully shaped, beautiful stone.