Bi (Pi; disc) / Artist Unknown, China

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About this Item

Record Details

Accession Number
1961/2.85A&B
Title
Bi (Pi; disc)
Object Creation Date
771 BCE - 256 BCE
Object Creation Place
Asia (continent)
China (nation)
Creation Place 1
Asia (continent)
Creation Place 2
China (nation)
Dimensions
14.3 cm x 14.3 cm x 0.3 cm (5 5/8 in. x 5 5/8 in. x 1/8 in.)
Primary Object Classification
Hardstone
Primary Object Type
jade
Secondary Object Classification
Ritual Objects
Physical Description
Large, flat disk made of gray and green jade with touches of black and brown with a hole in the center. Incised circle around outer edge of disk and around edge of interior hole.
Subject Matter
The “bi” disk originated among China’s Liangzhu culture around 3,000-2,500 B.C.E. The function and meaning of these disks are unknown. As late as the Han dynasty (206 B.C.–A.D. 220), jade disks performed a ritual function in aristocratic burials, where they were placed above the head, below the feet, and on the chest of the deceased. They were also depicted on painted burial shrouds of the second century B.C. In these paintings two dragons thread their way through a jade disk, going on their way from the nether world to the celestial realm. This suggests that jade disks may have been intended to help the deceased's soul in its journey to heaven. Although it is not certain that the disks functioned in this way in Neolithic times, the enormous labor involved in perfecting their abstract shape and lustrous finish is striking testimony to the reverence accorded them and their importance as a ceremonial object.
Rights
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Technical Details

Image Size
923 x 833
File Size
53 KB
Record
1961/2.85A&B
Link to this Item
https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-1961-sl-2.85a-amp-amp-sem-b/1961_2.85.jpg

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https://quod.lib.umich.edu/cgi/i/image/api/manifest/musart:1961-SL-2.85A-AMP-AMP-SEM-B:1961_2.85.JPG

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Full citation
"Bi (Pi; disc); Artist Unknown, China." In the digital collection University of Michigan Museum of Art. https://quod.lib.umich.edu/m/musart/x-1961-sl-2.85a-amp-amp-sem-b/1961_2.85.jpg. University of Michigan Library Digital Collections. Accessed March 28, 2024.
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