The
Chou patriarchal system gradually collapsed in the latter half of
the dynasty, known as the Eastern Chou period, leaving a new upper
class in its place. This period also saw the development of
thriving trade and commercial activity with remote regions,
leading to a vast increase in the supply of fine jade from the
Kunlun Mountains in eastern Central Asia. It was a time, moreover,
of greater intellectual freedom and increased contact with the
pastoral tribes on the northern and western frontiers. The jade
forms and designs of these areas were consequently incorporated by
the Chou. These new influences, together with the development of
iron tools and sophisticated lapidary techniques, brought jade
carving to an unequaled level of beauty and refinement.
During this period, ritual jades were used for sacrifices,
ceremonially exchanged between nobles, worn as adornments, and
interred in graves. The most important ritual jades were the
kuei tablet and pi
disc. The kuei was stylized from the jade ko dagger
and retained the peaked top of its predecessor. In small- to
medium-sized graves of Eastern Chou nobles, the deceased are
buried with stone kuei tablets and pi discs. By the
Han dynasty, jade kuei tablets were buried only in the
tombs of emperors and the kings of vassal states. At several
sacrificial sites throughout the empire, kuei tablets and
pi discs are found placed together as a set. In successive
dynasties, the two are even fashioned together.
In
its funerary function, jade was placed in the mouth, hands, ears,
nostrils and other orifices of the corpse. In many tombs, the
deceased is buried with a jade face cover or placed in a jade
shroud. The latter, commonly known as a "jade
suit" was made of small jade plaques
tied together with wire or silk thread. The body was totally
encased, except for the round opening of a pi disc at the
top of the head. It was believed that the hole served as a conduit
for the spirit to return to heaven. Pi discs were also laid
on and beneath the corpse, affixed to the top end of the coffin,
and hung from its four corners. Funerary pi were depicted
on silk tapestries, lacquer coffins, tile, and stone, and
fashioned from various materials, such as pottery, wood, lacquer,
and bronze. Some bronze pi are cast with the characters
"t'ien-men" (the gate of
heaven). The wide use of pi discs in the Warring States and
Han dynasty tombs to conduct the soul to heaven continues a
practice apparent in Neolithic graves of the Liang-chu Culture as
well. From archeological evidence, we know that the Liang-chu
Culture produced jade face covers and lacquer cups and plates with
jade inlay. The jade cups and chih vessels displayed in this
exhibit were probably used by the Chou and Han nobility to collect
morning dew for making elixirs of immortality. All of these pieces
indicate that the ancient customs of the Yueh in the Yangtze River
valley were revived by the Eastern Chou and Han.
During
these periods, it was also customary for the nobility to wear
elaborate sets of jade pendants to symbolize their high social
position. Most were hung from the waist and consisted of various
kinds of huang pendants and
pi discs, as well as huan rings and jade pendants
with dragon and phoenix decor strung together with silk cord. Each
is an integral work of art by itself, with a noble quality that is
further heightened when joined as a set. On several of the
pendants in this exhibit, the nose, ears, horns, jaw, tongue, and
limb joints of the dragon motif have disintegrated into full and
round cloud scrolls, gradually developing into the comma-shaped
ku (millet grain) pattern. The coiling lines perhaps
represent the mystical power of the endlessly evolving universe.
When worn by a chun-tzu (gentleman),
pendants with these patterns were known as "adornments of virtue"
(te-p'ei ). The chun-tzu walked with particular dignity
and composure when wearing this adornment.
Another jade adornment from this period is the thumb ring.
Originally used by archers for hooking bowstrings, they developed
as a decorative object during the late Warring States period and
were further refined in this function during the Han. Jade
thumb-ring shaped pendants were sometimes threaded together as
"adornments of virtue", and most
were worn separately. Sometimes they are found in tombs with jade
seals, huan rings, knives, and sword fittings. Some
examples of jade seals, jade sword fittings, and bronze knives
with jade handles and scabbards are displayed in this exhibit.
Overall, we witness the ascendance of humanism and the decline of
shamanism by the Eastern Chou period. Ritual objects for
sacrificial worship and burial are made from lower-grade materials
and roughly fashioned, serving simply to represent the fine jade
objects that once served these purposes. The most beautiful and
refined jades of this time were used by high nobles during their
lifetime as offerings to their lords, adornments, and curios.
These consisted of the many objects mentioned above, as well as
functional objects, such as the belt hooks, belt plaques,
hairpins, and combs found in this exhibit, and sculptural pieces,
such as amulets with winged beasts and figures and staff pommels
in the form of turtledoves.