A GREENISH-WHITE JADE CEREMONIAL AXE BLADE, YUE, LATE SHANG-WESTERN ZHOU DYNASTY
This lot is from a single owner collection and is therefore offered without reserve

China, late 2^nd-1^st millennium BC. Finely carved with the sides flaring towards the gently curved beveled cutting edge, decorated only with three fine lines neatly incised on each side above a drilled circular aperture. The translucent stone of a pale greenish-white tone with white streaks, nuances of pale yellow, icy veins, and dark specks.

Provenance: The Collection of Sam and Myrna Myers, Paris, France. Acquired between circa 1965-2012.
Condition: Good condition with expected wear, signs of prolonged burial and traces of weathering with associated small losses to edges and little encrustation, minuscule nibbling, the stone with natural fissures, some of which have developed into small hairline cracks.

Weight: 135 g
Dimensions: Height 16.4 cm

The Shang dynasty placed great emphasis on the administration of power through rites and ceremonies. As part of this elaborate system, various ritual jades, including trapezoidal blades (yue) like the present lot, ceremonial tablets (gui, which are similar to yue but usually feature straight sides), notched axes (qi), and halberd blades (ge), emerged alongside the traditional bi and cong, assuming significance in both life and afterlife contexts. Ceremonial blades must have been deemed rather important, as demonstrated by the sheer quantity and quality discovered in the tomb of Fu Hao, for example.

While collectively termed 'axe' in English, jade axes have variations of translations in Chinese. Ceremonial jades of a trapezoidal form with a straight or curved edge would be named yue, produced for a long duration of time from the Neolithic period to the Zhou dynasty. As a ceremonial weapon, jade yue symbolized power in ancient Chinese culture. This jade yue would have been attached to a wood pole to be carried by officials as an emblem of authority.

Literature comparison:
Compare a related jade gui dated to the Shang dynasty in the Palace Museum, Beijing.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Related
Auction: Christie’s New York, 19 March 2015, lot 522
Estimate: USD 13,750 or approx. EUR 16,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A semi-translucent pale greyish-white jade axe, China, 2nd-1st millennium BC
Expert remark: Compare the related form, manner of carving, and stone of similar color. Note the size (14 cm).

Auction result comparison:
Type: Related
Auction: Christie’s New York, 19 March 2015, lot 550
Price: USD 23,750 or approx. EUR 27,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: An opaque creamy caramel-toned jade blade, China, late Shang-Western Zhou dynasty, late 2^nd-1^st millennium BC
Expert remark: Compare the related form and manner of carving. Note the size (12.2 cm) and loss to the butt end.

Auction result comparison:
Type: Related
Auction: Bonhams, Hong Kong, 5 April 2016, lot 9
Estimate: HKD 2,680,000 or approx. EUR 344,000 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A white jade ceremonial blade, gui, Shang Dynasty or later
Expert remark: Compare the related form and manner of carving. Note the size (21.1 cm).