A JADE ‘DEER’ PENDANT, WESTERN ZHOU DYNASTY
China, 11th-8th century BC. Thick flat pendant finely carved as a reclining stag with its head turned back, the animal well detailed with round eyes, pointed ears and tall antlers, the body subtly incised, the pendant pierced through the deer’s long neck and the front hooves. The opaque stone of a greenish-beige tone with dark and russet veins and black specks.


Provenance:
Collection of Harry Geoffrey Beasley (1881-1939) and thence by descent to his widow Irene Beasley. Collection of Alfred William Cowperthwaite (1890-1964), acquired from the above c. 1939 and thence by descent in the same family. Harry Geoffrey Beasley (1881-1939) was a British anthropologist and museum curator who developed an important ethnographic collection during the early 20th century that is now held in various British museums. With his wife Irene, Beasley set up the Cranmore Ethnographical Museum which eventually held more than 6,000 objects of ethnographical interest. The Beasleys collected objects from across Europe, buying from auction houses and local museums to expand the collection, which contained material from the Pacific, Asia, Africa, and Northwestern America. Beasley wrote numerous articles for anthropological journals and was considered an expert in his field. He died in 1939 and his collection was stored with the British Museum collections during the war, which was fortunate, as the Cranmore Museum was destroyed by bombing. After the war, substantial portions of the collection were passed to the British Museum, the Royal Museum in Edinburgh, the Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, the University of Cambridge, the Pitt Rivers Museum, and the Merseyside County Museum. Other pieces, such as the present lot, were sold by his widow and, after her death in 1974, by their daughters. Alfred William Cowperthwaite (1890-1964) was a contributor to the Cranmore Museum and became good friends with Harry Beasley. Shortly after Harry Beasley’s death, he acquired a number of objects from Irene Beasley, including the present lot.

Condition:
Very good condition with expected old wear, minuscule nibbling, a tiny loss to the front hooves, minor signs of weathering and erosion. The stone with natural fissures, some of which have developed into small hairline cracks.

Weight: 9.3 g
Dimensions: Length 3.6 cm


Literature comparison:

Compare a related jade pendant in the form of a stag, also dated to the Western Zhou dynasty, dated ca. 1050-950 BC, 5.4 cm high, in the National Museum of Asian Art, Smithsonian Institution, accession number S1987.873. Compare a pair of related jade deer, also dated to the Western Zhou dynasty, 11th-8th century BC, 4.2 cm high, in the British Museum, registration number 2022,3034.125. Compare a related jade deer, also dated to the Western Zhou dynasty, 11th-9th century BC, 4.1 cm high, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, accession number 24.51.14.


Auction result comparison:

Type: Related
Auction: Christie’s Hong Kong, 29 November 2017, lot 2737
Price: HKD 525,000 or approx.
EUR 69,500
converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing
Description: A jade deer-form pendant, mid-Western Zhou dynasty, circa mid-10th to mid-9th century BC
Expert remark: Compare the reclining pose and similar dark veins. Note the size (4.6 cm). to mid




西周玉鹿佩飾

中國，公元前十一至八世紀。墜飾成厚片狀，精美雕刻一支臥鹿，頭後轉，圓眼尖耳，鹿角高聳，鹿長頸及前蹄有孔用於懸挂。玉料不透明，呈淺綠色，帶有深色和赤褐色的紋理和黑色斑點。


來源：
Harry Geoffrey Beasley (1881-1939)收藏，他逝世後由其遺孀Irene Beasley保存；Alfred William Cowperthwaite (1890-1964)，約於1939年購於上述收藏，之後在同一家族保存至今。Harry Geoffrey Beasley (1881-1939) 是一位英國人類學家和博物館館長，他在二十世紀初建立了一個重要的民族志收藏，現在收藏在英國的各個博物館中。Beasley和他的妻子Irene一起建立了Cranmore民族志博物館，該博物館最終收藏了 6,000 多件民族志方面的物品。Beasley 收集了來自歐洲各地的物品，從拍賣行和當地博物館購買以擴大收藏範圍，其中包含來自太平洋、亞洲、非洲和美國西北部的資料。Beasley為人類學期刊撰寫了大量文章，被公認爲是該領域的專家。他於 1939 年去世，他的藏品幸虧在戰爭期間被存放在大英博物館裏，而Cranmore博物館被轟炸摧毀。戰後，大部分藏品被轉移到大英博物館、愛丁堡皇家博物館、劍橋大學考古與人類學博物館、Pitt Rivers博物館和Merseyside County博物館。其他收藏，例如現在的拍品，由他的遺孀出售，在她 1974 年去世後，由他們的女兒出售。Alfred William Cowperthwaite (1890-1964) 曾是Cranmore 民族志博物館重要支持人，也曾是 Harry Beasley的好友。在Harry Beasley去世不久，他從Irene Beasley 處購買了一些收藏，包括此件拍品。

品相：
狀況極好，有磨損、微小的磕損，前蹄有微小缺損，輕微的風化和侵蝕跡象。玉料有天然裂隙，有的已發展成細小的裂紋。

重量：9.3 克
尺寸：長 3.6 厘米


文獻比較：

比較一件相近的西周約公元前1050-950年鹿形玉珮，高 5.4 厘米，收藏於史密森尼國立亞洲藝術博物館，收藏編號S1987.873。比較一對相近的約公元十一至八世紀西周玉鹿，高4.2 厘米，收藏於大英博物館，收藏編號2022,3034.125。比較一件相近的公元前十一至九世紀西周玉鹿，高4.1 厘米，收藏於大都會藝術館，收藏編號24.51.14。


拍賣結果比較：

形制：相近
拍賣：香港佳士得，2017年11月29日，lot 2737
價格：HKD 525,000（相當於今日
EUR 69,500
）
描述：西周中期約公元十至九世紀鹿形玉珮
專家評論：比較斜躺姿勢和類似的暗靜脈刻痕。請注意尺寸(4.6厘米)。