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)
- Artist
- Artist Unknown, China
- Medium and Support
- cloudy light green nephrite with black and brown mottling
- 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.)
- Century
- 8th BCE - 3rd BCE
- 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.
- Secondary Keywords
- ceremonial objects
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- Rights
- If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit https://umma.umich.edu/about/services/request-image/ for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form.
Technical Details
- Collection
- University of Michigan Museum of Art
- 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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Related Links
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- In public portfolios
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- Manifest
-
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 June 15, 2024.