One of the fifteen beads found inside the bronze wine container you 卣 (S1987.968a-b); perforations drilled off-center from both sides; slightly flared profile; two subtly incised bowstrings in low relief in the middle; even dark gray-green with dark brown streaks; uneven smaller end.
Provenance:
Reportedly excavated in Anhui province, China [1]
From at least 1929 to 1941
Mrs. Christian R. Holmes (1871-1941), New York and "The Chimneys," Sands Point, Port Washington, Long Island, from at least 1929 [2]
From 1941 to 1963
Holmes Foundation, New York [3]
1963
Sale, New York, Parke-Bernet Galleries, Important Chinese Art: Early Dynastic Bronzes, Silver and Gold...Collected by the Late Mrs. Christian R. Holmes, New York, Sold by the Order of the Holmes Foundation, November 14-15, 1963, lot 207 (ill.): "Fifteen Pale Green Jade Tomb Amulets."
From 1963 to 1965
J. T. Tai & Co., New York, New York, purchased at Sale, Parke-Bernet Galleries, Important Chinese Art..., November 14-15, 1963 [4]
From 1965 to 1987
Dr. Arthur M. Sackler (1913-1987), New York, purchased from J. T. Tai & Co., New York, New York, in 1965 [5]
From 1987
Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, gift of Dr. Arthur M. Sackler on September 11, 1987 [6]
Notes:
[1] The jade and 14 other jade beads, S1987.935.1-15, were said to have been found inside the bronze you, S1987.968a-b, at the time it was excavated, see Royal Academy of Arts, International Exhibition of Chinese Art, exh. cat. (London: Royal Academy of Arts, 1935-36), cat. 233.
See also provenance record for S1987.968a-b.
[2] The bronze with which the jades were reportedly excavated was in the possession of Mrs. Holmes from at least 1929, see provenance record for S1987.968a-b.
[3] Mrs. Holmes had established the Holmes Foundation to continue her charity work after her death.
[4] See Joan Marcia Hartman, “America,” Oriental Art 10, 1 (Spring 1964), p. 46.
[5] According to information included in a document “Arthur M. Sackler Gift, Chinese Jades: Summary,” provided by Arthur M. Sackler Foundation, October 2009, copy in object file.
[6] Pursuant to the agreement between Dr. Arthur M. Sackler and the Smithsonian Institution, dated July 28, 1982, legal title of the donated objects was transferred to the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery on September 11, 1987.
Collection:
Arthur M. Sackler Collection
Exhibition History:
Anyang: China's Ancient City of Kings (February 25, 2023 to April 28, 2024)
The Arts of China (November 18, 1990 to September 7, 2014)
Ancient Chinese Bronzes and Jades (October 1, 1989 - September 10, 1990)
Chinese Bronzes from American Collections (October 19 to November 27, 1938)
International Exhibition of Chinese Art (November 28, 1935 to March 7, 1936)
