Bixie-shaped Jade Jar

Excavated from Laohudun Eastern-Han Tomb in Ganquan town, Hanjiang district of Yangzhou city in 1984, this jar deserves the acknowledgement as one the best pieces of Eastern-Han jadeware thanks to its material of Hetian white jade produced in Xinjiang and distinctive shape of a kneeling “Bixie”, an auspicious mythological beast believed to have the power of fending off evils. Holding several lingzhi fungus in its right hand, this animal has a circular opening on its head, paired with a silver lid. The decorative motifs of swirls and feathers scatter on the body were done by a series of carving techniques including freestanding, openwork, relief and thin, sunken lines.