A WHITE JADE ‘DRAGON’ PENDANT, HAN DYNASTYJade. China, Han dynasty, 2nd century BC to 2nd century ADThe flattened pendant is well carved as a fierce dragon, its back slightly arched, the furcated tail terminating in a curled tip, the mouth wide open revealing sharp fangs, the body and features neatly incised, the center with a circular sunken element pierced with Chinese characters.The translucent stone is of a white tone with brownish-gray shadings and small areas of opaque calcification.Literature comparison: Compare a related jade plaque from the Myers collection, dated to the late Eastern Zhou period, published in Fillippo Salviati, Radiant Stones: Archaic Chinese Jades, 2004, Honkong, no. 108 and on the cover.LENGTH 10.8 cmProvenance: Private Collection of Irene and Wolfgang Zacke (1942-2022).