Unique 2500 Year Old Jade & 18K Gold Jewelry

To “Worship Heaven with a Jade Bi” explains their importance and use in ancient Chinese culture.

This is an authentic ancient Chinese jade bi disc pendant size expertly fashioned as a necklace with a contemporary 18K gold setting . It comes from the Qijia culture, Northwestern China, circa 3000-2000 BCE.

Dimensions: Jade Bi is 2.25 inches diameter and is accompanied by a 22″ inch adjustable necklace cord.

Provenance: Private collection

All our Jade jewelry is artisan inspired & hand crafted from authentic old Jade bi and 18K gold.
We will provide you with a custom black gift box and certificate of authenticity. ( please view photo)

Photographed in natural day light.

History:
Flat jade discs with a round central hole bi are among the earliest surviving artifacts of China and must be considered among great ancient art forms- masterpieces of the Neolithic period. Nephrite jade from which discs were fashioned is a prime hard and strong stone, arduous to work by hand using Primitive stone tools and abrasives. It’s no wonder then that jade discs “bi” represent remarkable craftsmanship.

While all theories presented to date are speculative, we can forward one based Upon the warring states text Zhou Li that bi are thought to represent symbols of heaven and were used in ancient rituals together with square tubes and cong symbolizing the earth. To worship heaven with a bi explains their importance and use and symbolize status of high social rank and sheds light on why many carved jades have been found in Zhou royal tombs. They are prominently found in varied qualities, quantities and sizes. Their ritual prominence stretches from the most ancient of Chinese history- Hongshan/Liangzhou/Longshan (4700-2190 BCE)/ Qi Jia cultures and on to the Zhou dynasty (3000-250 BCE) onwards.

Today jade bi are emblematic of power, status and privileged classes and offer more complex, varied meaning. Please refer to these excellent publications: Jessica Rawson, Chinese Jade from the Neolithic to the Qing, exhibition catalogue, The British Museum, London, 1995, pp 13ff, and Section 4. And also Radiant Stones Archaic Chinese Jades, the Myrna and Samurai Myers collection, 2000 curated by Filippo Salviati, PhD, entry 14, Bi Disc.

We have been dealing in authentic Japanese, Chinese, European, and Asian Fine art, antiquities, garden ornaments, lanterns and water basins for 25 years. Our president personally travels to Japan, Europe and China each year to meet his network partners who assist him in finding best examples. He personally inspects each antique work of art to ensure its old age, authenticity and quality condition. After accumulating a group, they are imported to Vermont in large containers. This method keeps shipping costs low and enables us to offer them to you at reasonable prices. We ship internationally.