CHINA ARQUEOLOGIA golden-age-chinese-archayeolog

by two winglike shapes covered with curls and spirals,
appears to merge into a fearsome monster face
below. The monster face has two large bulging eyes,
two prominent nostrils, and a large mouth, incised
along the bottom edge of the plaque, with neatly
aligned teeth. The carving technique is far more
advanced than that of the first plaque: the contour
is smooth, the engraving fluent, and the openwork
precise. The surface is carefully modulated to accentuate
the monster's face and smoothly polished
to a soft luster.
The function of these plaques remains unknown.
They have been found exclusively in Middle
Liangzhu tombs at Yaoshan positioned among
pottery vessels near the feet of the deceased. 4 Although
their half-disk form resembles that of neck
pendants (huang) found near the chest of the deceased,
their position and the absence of suspension
holes indicate that they may have served other
functions. Small, connected holes on the back of
plaques suggest that the objects were probably
sewn onto clothing or sheets of fabric, which decomposed
over the centuries of burial, zs
1 Excavated in 1987 (M 7:55); reported: Zheijiang 19883, 46.
2 Nanjing 1982, 30, fig. 4:13, for a photographic reproduction,
see Zhejiang 1989, pi. 203.
3 Excavated in 1987 (M 10:20); reported: Zheijiang 19883,
46-47.
4 Zhejiang K)88b, 46 - 47.
34
a. Jade rod-shaped fitting
Height6(2 3 A)
Liangzhu Culture, Middle Period
(c. 2800-2400 BCE)
From Yaoshan, Yuhang, Zhejiang Province
Zhejiang Provincial Institute of Archaeology,
Hangzhou
b. Jade rod-shaped fitting
Height 18.4 (7 ft)
Liangzhu Culture, Middle Period
(c. 2800-2400 BCE)
From Fanshan, Yuhang, Zhejiang Province
Zhejiang Provincial Institute of Archaeology,
Hangzhou
Square in cross section and gently tapering to
a point, these rod-shaped fittings are decorated
with face motifs and incised striations that date
them to the middle period of the Liangzhu culture
(c. 2800-2400 BCE). The monster faces on the
smaller fitting (a) 1 are in high relief with dished
eyes and sculpted mouth; the faces on the larger
one (b) 2 are somewhat abbreviated and cut in
low relief.
Rod-shaped fittings were made throughout
the Liangzhu period; the developmental sequence
of the form largely parallels that of the cong. Examples
datable to the early period (3200-2800 BCE)
are round in cross section, taper gradually to a
point, and are drilled through the broad end with a
small conical hole. 3 By the middle period, such
fittings become thicker and longer, often square in
cross section, and were decorated with complex
face motifs. The monster-and-human images, similar
to those on the cong, are executed in modulated
relief, and finely engraved lines and characteristically
span the two adjacent sides of the corner. The
butt is often worked down to a stepped tab, which is
drilled with a small hole. Rod-shaped fittings of the
Late Liangzhu period (2400-2000 BCE) are much
longer and more angular in form. One example
found at Fuquanshan in Shanghai measures 34
129 LIANCZHU CULTURE