In the vast river of Chinese history, jade is not only an exquisite ornament but also a sacred object carrying the national spirit and cultural lineage. If we were to trace the golden age of jade culture development, the Shang and Zhou dynasties undoubtedly hold a prominent place. During that era, jade artifacts were no longer merely the simple aspirations of Neolithic ancestors for a better life; instead, they were endowed with deeper political, religious, and social functions, becoming a vivid footnote to the “Land of Ritual Jade.”
In my collection room, a late Shang dynasty jade ge (dagger-axe), despite enduring over three millennia of vicissitudes, still emanates a chilling gleam. It was not a practical weapon but a ritual object symbolizing royal power and conquest. The appearance of the jade ge marked the transition of jade from decoration to ritual implement, which is the most significant feature of Shang dynasty jade culture. Shang rulers were superstitious about ghosts and gods and placed great importance on sacrifices, making jade objects a medium for communicating with heaven and earth. As recorded in the “Book of Rites – Jade Ornaments”: “The Son of Heaven wears white jade, dukes and marquises wear dark mountain jade, ministers wear azure water jade, and scholars wear fine agate.” This shows the strict hierarchy of jade, symbolizing status and position. The 755 jade artifacts unearthed from the tomb of Fu Hao in Yinxu are diverse in type and exquisite in craftsmanship. They include not only ritual vessels and ceremonial weapons but also a large number of zoomorphic jades, such as jade dragons, phoenixes, and tigers, which are vividly shaped and smoothly carved, demonstrating the superb carving skills of Shang jade artisans and their profound understanding of animal forms. These jade artifacts are not only exquisite works of art but also valuable physical materials for studying Shang dynasty social structure, religious beliefs, and aesthetic tastes.
Entering the Western Zhou dynasty, the Zhou people inherited the jade culture traditions of the Shang dynasty and developed and innovated upon them, forming a more complete ritual jade system. Duke of Zhou established rites and music, incorporating jade into the core of the ritual system, emphasizing “using six jade instruments to ritualize heaven, earth, and the four directions.” The “Rites of Zhou – Spring Officials – Grand Master of Rites” meticulously records the uses of the “six instruments” – bi (disc), cong (tube), gui (tablet), zhang (tablet), hu (tiger-shaped ornament), and huang (arc-shaped pendant): bi for heaven, cong for earth, gui for the east, zhang for the south, hu for the west, and huang for the north. This concept of associating jade with heaven, earth, the four directions, the Five Elements, and the Eight Trigrams reflects the Zhou people’s profound understanding of cosmic order and their ultimate pursuit of ritual norms. I once had the privilege of seeing a Western Zhou jade huang; its shape was like a half-bi, with graceful curves and finely carved patterns on its surface. Although less majestic and mysterious than Shang jade, it possessed a gentle elegance. It was not merely an ornament but also an embodiment of the Zhou people’s moral principle that “a gentleman does not part with jade without cause.” In terms of ornamentation, Zhou dynasty jade gradually moved away from the mysterious and grotesque taotie masks of the Shang dynasty, turning to dragon and phoenix patterns, bird patterns, cloud and thunder patterns, etc., with smoother lines and more rigorous compositions, reflecting the Zhou people’s rational and orderly aesthetic concepts.
Shang and Zhou jade artifacts, whether the fierce majesty of the Shang or the elegant solemnity of the Zhou, silently tell the stories of their times. They were symbols of royal power, bridges to communicate with deities, markers of social hierarchy, and epitomes of the early spiritual outlook of Chinese civilization. From the dazzling array of artifacts in Fu Hao’s tomb at Yinxu to the solemn ritual vessels at the Zhouyuan site, each jade artifact embodies the wisdom and beliefs of the ancients. They are not only important archaeological discoveries but also the source of our understanding of the core Chinese value of “a gentleman compares his virtue to jade.” The warmth, tenacity, and introversion of jade perfectly align with the character of the Chinese nation, becoming a material carrier of the Chinese cultural spirit.
Today, as we re-examine these millennia-old jade artifacts, the cultural significance they embody still shines brightly. They remind us that jade is not just a beautiful stone but also a witness to Chinese history and a conveyor of traditional culture. Collecting ancient jade is not merely about possessing rare treasures; it is about conversing with the ancients and feeling that cultural pulse that transcends time. Every touch, every gaze, is a tracing of history, a tribute to civilization. Shang and Zhou jade, with its unique charm, showcases the brilliance and profundity of early Chinese civilization to the world, and it laid a solid foundation for the development of later jade culture. Its essence as a land of ritual continues to influence our aesthetics and values to this day.