Jade. China, Late Neolithic period, Liangzhu culture, c. 3300-2200 BC 玉璧 - 新石器時代晚期, 良渚文化, 約公元前3300-2200年 This imposing Neolithic bi 璧 disc is simple and unadorned, as virtually all Liangzhu discs, with a striking marble-like pattern created by the many black, greyish and white areas of the stone. The disc is amazingly round with very few irregularities in form: the circumference presents just a few perceptable undulations and there is only a very small area where it slopes ever so slightly towards the edge. The surface of the bi is finely polished and smooth to the touch, except for some occasional rough patches where the jade is slightly pitted and calcified. There are visible toolmarks in the central hole, which has been drilled from both sides, leaving a central ridge. Similar discs from excavations are reproduced in Zhejiang Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, Liangzhu wenhua yuqi良渚文化玉器 (Jades of the Liangzhu Culture), Beijing 1990, nos.75 and 90. See also a Liangzhu culture bi disc of similar dimensions, type of jade and veining formerly in the collection of Robert H. Ellsworth (1929-2014) and auctioned at Christie’s New York on 19 March 2015, sale 11420, lot 487. Compare also a disc in the Sam and Myrna Myers collection published in J.P. Desroches, Two Americans in Paris. A Quest for Asian Art, Paris 2016, no.66. Provenance: From an old Austrian collection DIAMETER 22.3 CM - HOLE 5.3 CM 直径 22.3 厘米 - 孔徑 5.3 厘米 Expertise: Univ. Prof. Filippo Salviati All jades in this catalogue have been professionally examined, authenticated and dated by Univ. Prof. Filippo Salviati. Professor Salviati teaches Chinese and Korean art at Sapienza University in Rome, in the Italian Institute of Oriental Studies. He is a world expert on archaic Chinese jades, having released multiple publications and being cited by renowned auction houses such as Sotheby’s.