X-RARE Ancient Chinese Jade Falcon Carries Departed Soul to Heaven w/Translation

Description

ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS
Artifacts, Antiques & Fine Collectibles
Ancient Chinese Hongshan Culture Jade “Heaven Bird” Amulet
“Messenger of Heaven”
Falcon Carries a Departed Soul to Heaven
English Translation of Chinese Pictographs/Characters
English Translation Provided
c. 4500 BC—2250 BC
“A Dragon can be unseen or visible, minute or huge,
long or short.  However, always it is great.”
—Shuo Wen (c. 100 AD)
NOTE:
William D. Houghton, the President of ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS
, a State of Washington Licensed Business,
assumes all responsibility for the information contained in this description and for the English translation and transcription of the ancient Chinese graphic characters.
Furthermore, I prohibit the further dissemination of this information in any written, video, or electronic format without my expressed, written approval.
Thank You!
Summary
Item:
Jade
Amulet:
Heaven Bird Falcon Carries a Departed Soul to Heaven
Material:
Nephrite jade turned orange from iron in the soil.
Country:
China
Culture:
Hongshan Culture
Est. Date:
4500 BC—2250 BC
Measurements:
·
Height:
5.21” (132mm)
·
Width:
2.73” (69mm)
·
Depth:
2.15” (55mm)
·
Weight:
13.7 oz. (388gr)
Condition:
·
This nephrite jade, Hongshan Culture, Jade Heaven Bird & Soul amulet is in museum quality condition for being about 5,000-years-old.
The once celadon green jade has turned an amazing shade of orange/brown from the iron and other elements in the damp soil that have been absorbed into and from the jade after being buried for thousands of years.
This patina should never be removed, because the natural patina is one way to identify an authentic Liangzhu jade.
·
As noted above, although this jade pendant is shows signs of differential weathering, old solid fissures, and it has a wonderful ancient patina.
It has not been repaired or restored, but has been partially cleaned in China by the previous owner to show the beauty of the jade and to reveal the characters.
Provenance: This amulet/pendant is one of several items that was obtained from a private collector in China.
I believe these amulets would have been included in an Emperor’s tomb or temple to provide him a safe journey and eternal life in Heaven.
This is the first time it has been offered for sale in the United States.
NOTE:
Items offered for sale by Ancient Civilizations are unconditionally guaranteed authentic. They were legally imported to the United States years ago and are legal to sell and own under U.S. Statute Title 19, Chapter 14, Code 2611, Convention on Cultural Property.
Details
This unique Jade Heaven Bird artifact weighs 13.7 oz. (388 gr.) and measures 5.21" (132mm) tall x 2.73" (69 mm) wide x 2.15" (55 mm) thick.
This remarkable Jade Falcon Amulet is made of Nephrite Jade and Chinese experts estimate it dates to the Late Hongshan Culture of ancient China (4700—2250 BC) or about 4,500 years ago!
The Nephrite Jade that was once a stunning green, has now aged from the iron and other minerals in the soil to a beautiful orange color.
In addition, there are perhaps 35+ very small, ancient Chinese characters that have been pecked, painted, and scratched into the jade.  I have translated the ones I can clearly see into English—see below.
The back of the Jade Falcon has two drilled holes that both enter and exit on the reverse side of the amulet; they were used to attach the amulet with a silk cord around the neck.  These curved holes are classified as “ox-nose loop-holes” by archaeologists and are period correct.
They even have tiny characters etched inside the holes that were meant only for the eyes to the Ancestors, as human eyes were not worthy to see them.
The Jade Heaven Bird’s beak, large eyes, and long wings folded next to his side seem to indicate it was modeled after a falcon.  Specifically, my research indicates that this amulet is likely based on the Amur Falcon, which was also known as the Eastern Red-Footed Falcon until recently.  The Amur Falcon breeds in Northern China in the same area as the Hongshan Culture lived and the falcons migrate in the winter to Southern Africa.  Ancient Chinese records from the Heian Dynasty in China indicate that falcons were presented as royal gifts in 2205 BC.
Some historians estimate that since about 8,000 years ago, the earliest civilizations in Northern China believed that birds were “Messenger from Heaven” that was sent by the Gods to fetch departed souls that were destined for immortality.  This Heaven Bird is depicted doing just that!
Chinese mythological and religious beliefs thought that a person’s soul, once freed from its Earthly body, traveled to Heaven in the form of a Heaven Bird.  The Amur Falcon’s winter migration pattern to South Africa would have made it appear to the ancient Chinese that the Falcons had left Earth and returned to the Heavens.  The Falcons immortality was reaffirmed when they appeared back in China in the Spring.
The Hongshan Culture
The Hongshan were temple builders and city builders who created some of the earliest nephrite jade carvings. Their sophisticated Jade carving techniques employed technologies that exceeded simple explanations. It has recently been discovered that the Hongshan possessed the knowledge of metallurgy and employed the use of copper and iron from meteorites as tools to work their jade masterpieces. Many of the Hongshan Jade artifacts are well persevered because the Hongshan culture utilized slab burial tombs and because of the dry arid climate of Inner Mongolia.
As many of you know, Nephrite jade, also known as “soft jade” or “ancient Jade” in China, was used from China’s early Neolithic cultures in 8,000 BC to 1800 AD for carving all types of ritual and utilitarian items.  Nephrite, which is somewhat “softer” than the jadeite used by Neolithic Japanese and European cultures, was easier to cut, carve, polish, and drill than jadeite.  So, the ancient Chinese found that Nephrite Jade could be worked by using quartz or garnet sand, polished with bamboo or jade dust, and even drilled with wood drills that used a slurry made of jade dust and water as the abrasive.
Jade was highly prized by these early civilizations in China, and it was thought to have positive energy to drive away evil spirits and bring good luck and fortune to all who wore a piece on their person--in life and in death. Jade was also believed to be a portal or messenger that could carry prayers to Heaven and send messages to those on Earth from departed ancestors and Gods in Heaven.
Based on artifact evidence and 30 years of study that the Hongshan employed advanced jade shaping and carving tools that may have been made from meteorite iron or even diamonds. One fascinating study is the evidence of high content iron found in black jades used for ritual objects by the early Hongshan. Many of these artifacts are magnetic and express the possibility that the Hongshan were aware of magnetic earth forces.
During China’s Neolithic Period, Hongshan Jade ritual and tomb objects were created for a period of more than 2,000 years. Hongshan jades have been discovered in large quantities with over 52 different types of Jade objects in various shapes and forms.
Jade (called the “Stone of Heaven” by the Chinese) is considered immortal and priceless.  Indeed, the inscription and dedication found written on this amulet has lasted over 5,000 years! Please see below for my translation of some of the pictographs and characters contained on this priceless jade artifact.
E
nglish Translation of Early Chinese Written Words/Characters (Pictographs)
NOTE:
William D. Houghton, the President of ANCIENT CIVILIZATIONS, a State of Washington Licensed Business, assumes all responsibility for the information contained in this description and for the English translation and transcription of the ancient Chinese graphic characters.
Any translation errors are unintentional and strictly mine.
As noted above, this lovely amulet contains 35+ tiny, ancient, Chinese pictographic characters that have been pecked, scratched, and painted on the jade the amulet.  We know that this amulet was made in the mid-Hongshan Culture (4700 BC—2250 BC) because of the characters on this amulet, as this Neolithic culture did not begin using this type of character instead of pictographs (also called graphics) until about 3,000 BC.  This style of writing called Shuowen Jiezi was used before the next type of Chinese characters were used to form a written language that we now call Seal Script or
Ku’wen
.
The characters are written to offer sacrifice to the Ancestors and plead that they accept the soul of the departed into Heaven (
Tien
) for eternal life.  Here are some of the early Chinese characters that I have been able to translate into English:
These pictographic characters on ritual and tomb jades are the earliest form of a written language in ancient China.
Modern archeologists call these early pictograms oracle bone script as they have been found as a permanent record that was written by scribes on both oracle bones of cattle and on ritual jade artifacts.
The once, olive-green jade Heaven Bird and the tiny pictographic characters incised onto it have turned an orange/dark-brown color from the iron, micro-crystalline jade, calcium, and other elements in the damp soil that have been absorbed into the jade after being buried for thousands of years. The shallow incised characters have been differentially eroded on the jade and thus are exceedingly difficult to transcribe and translate.
All the pictographs are ridiculously small, some only 2-3mm long, that were only meant to be seen by the Ancestors, as human eyes were not worthy. Although the characters are tiny and may look just like random spider pitting or blotches of black paint, under 10x-20x magnification you can see them.
Here are just a few of the pictographs I’ve translated:
1.
The Sons and Grandsons offering the traditional items of jade, ritual wine, and sacrificed animals to the Ancestors.
2.
Sons sacrificing several animals with a flint knifes/axes.
3.
A large dear with horns.
The white arrows highlight the dear’s chest and horns. The red circle shows the fire coming out of a Dragon’s open jaws.
{See photo # 5)
4.
Ancestors pictured watching the offerings presented by the Sons and Grandsons.
5.
Several Fire-Breathing Dragon that are percussively pecked, incised, and painted on both the Heaven Bird and on the Soul’s head.
{See photos # 5}
6.
Inside the “ox-
nose bore”
hole on the back of the Falcon is a undecipherable creature.
{
See photo # 7}
7.
Also in photo # 7 is a white animal sitting between the two holes.
8.
The two parallel lines on the back of the Heaven Bird are the character “
Erh
” and in this case represents not just the number two, but also the number of Earth because it makes the pair with Heaven (
Tien
).
{See photo # 3.}
9.
There are several characters that depict the Ancestor receiving the jade, wine, raw meat.  In at least one case, the Ancestor is depicted diving headfirst to Earth in order to accept the gifts bestowed upon him.
10.
The character for "Highest or Supreme" (
Shan
in Chinese).  This character likely is an adjective for the Ancestors who live eternally in Heaven.
11.
The Falcon’s left eye has one, tiny pictographic character in the center of this eye—but it is too faint for me to decipher.  This appears to have been a common practice during the Hongshan Culture, as I have seen several other jade artifacts where the eyes have served as a background for similar inscriptions and/or dedications. {See macro photo # 4.}
In addition, there are perhaps 25+ other pictographs and characters that were once pecked or painted in black paint on the Falcon and on the head of the Soul, but have now faded and blurred so that I’m unable to decipher and translate them.
RESOURCES
·
Jade
, Consolidating Editor, Roger Keverne, pg. 71—76.
·
The Ancestral Landscape
, David N. Knightley, 2000
·
Chinese Characters,
Dr. L. Wieger, S.J.
·
The Great Bronze Age of China
:
An Exhibition from the People’s Republic of China
, edited by Wen Fong, 1980
·
Metropolitan Museum of Art, NYC
·
Ancient Chinese Warfare
, Ralph D. Sawyer, Mei-chün Sawyer
·
Archaeology
, Archaeological Institute of America, Feb/March 2015
·
Shanghai Museum, China
·
Museum of Chinese History, Beijing, China
·
National Palace Museum, Taipei, Taiwan
·
British Museum
Smithson
Value
I have carefully examined this ancient jade amulet and I GUARANTEE it to be original and authentic or your money back! I’ve looked under 10x-20x magnification under both natural and Black Light and I can find no signs of any modern tool work or repairs. The hand tool marks left in the jade by the master stone artist who carved, shaped, and engraved this work of art appear to be consistent with those marks of other ancient jades I have examined.
Each object I sell is professionally researched, translated (if I can...(smile), and compared with similar objects in the collections of the finest museums in the world. I have been dealing in fine antiquities for over 45 years and although certainly not an expert in every field, I have been honored to appraise, buy, collect, and enjoy and recently sell some of the finest ancient art in the world. When in doubt, I have worked with dozens of subject matter experts to determine the condition and authenticity of numerous antiquities and antiques. This careful examination helps to insure you are buying quality items and helps to protect your investment. There are many modern reproductions or "fakes" on the market today, so be sure and buy only from experts in the field.
Please examine the macro photos taken indoors carefully, as they are part of the description.
The stand is not part of the auction, just included to give you a better perspective.
And please ask any questions before you buy.
I GUARANTEE this amulet is ancient and authentic or your money back!
Per e-Bay's rules, PayPal only please!
THANK YOU!
FREE SHIPPING IN USA includes INSURANCE for all 50 United States.
Overseas buyers are responsible for all import & excises taxes, duties, and shipping charges.