This Neolithic jade bird amulet probably comes from the Hongshan culture in northeastern China (4700 to 2900 bce). Hongshan sites have been found in an area stretching from Inner Mongolia to Liaoning. Jade was used as early as the fifth millennium BCE for making personal ornaments and small animal sculptures. In early Chinese art, animal motifs are generally either naturalistic or highly stylized – but in both cases, the artist always appears to have developed a close intimacy with the animals. Although we do not know the exact meaning of animal motifs, the context of similar finds suggests that these creatures were part of the religious or shamanic system. Unlike the traditional spirit bird or eagle motifs with wide outstretched wings, this bird is seated on a limb with wings behind and against its body, and long graceful tail. This pei or amulet is 2-7/8 inches long, 7/8 inches wide, and 1-1/8 inches deep, and features the traditional ox nose drilled hole behind the bird’s head.

As with archaic jades, the carving has been cleaned to remove surface alteration from age however edge, surface wear, and stable fissures are visible. Centuries of patina are still evident but only increase the natural beauty.