Carving of a Recumbent Mythical Quadruped, late 18th century. Nephrite, 1 3/4 x 4 1/2 in. (4.4 x 11.4 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Stanley Herzman, 78.85.1. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 78.85.1_PS4.jpg)
Carving of a Recumbent Mythical Quadruped, late 18th century. Nephrite, 1 3/4 x 4 1/2 in. (4.4 x 11.4 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Stanley Herzman, 78.85.1. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 78.85.1_bw.jpg)
Carving of a Recumbent Mythical Quadruped
Asian Art
Jade animal figurines have been prominent in Chinese art since Neolithic times and are treasured for the association of jade with immortality. During the Ming and Qing dynasties (1368–1911), economic development and increased jade supply led to the wide use of jade for luxury objects like these, which depict a lion-like mythical beast that first appeared in stone tomb sculpture of the Han dynasty (206 b.c.–a.d. 220) to safeguard the spirit of the dead. Although the figures were no longer expected to provide protection, they still had auspicious meaning. One of the beasts (78.85.7) holds in its mouth a lingzhi, a type of fungus also associated with immortality.
MEDIUM
Nephrite
DATES
late 18th century
DYNASTY
Qing Dynasty
PERIOD
Qing Dynasty
DIMENSIONS
1 3/4 x 4 1/2 in. (4.4 x 11.4 cm) (show scale)
COLLECTIONS
Asian Art
ACCESSION NUMBER
78.85.1
CREDIT LINE
Gift of Stanley Herzman
MUSEUM LOCATION
This item is not on view
CAPTION
Carving of a Recumbent Mythical Quadruped, late 18th century. Nephrite, 1 3/4 x 4 1/2 in. (4.4 x 11.4 cm). Brooklyn Museum, Gift of Stanley Herzman, 78.85.1. Creative Commons-BY (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 78.85.1_PS4.jpg)
IMAGE
overall, 78.85.1_PS4.jpg. Brooklyn Museum photograph, 2015
"CUR" at the beginning of an image file name means that the image was created by a curatorial staff member. These study images may be digital point-and-shoot photographs, when we don\'t yet have high-quality studio photography, or they may be scans of older negatives, slides, or photographic prints, providing historical documentation of the object.
RIGHTS STATEMENT
Creative Commons-BY
You may download and use Brooklyn Museum images of this three-dimensional work in accordance with a Creative Commons license. Fair use, as understood under the United States Copyright Act, may also apply.
Please include caption information from this page and credit the Brooklyn Museum. If you need a high resolution file, please fill out our online application form (charges apply).
For further information about copyright, we recommend resources at the United States Library of Congress, Cornell University, Copyright and Cultural Institutions: Guidelines for U.S. Libraries, Archives, and Museums, and Copyright Watch.
For more information about the Museum's rights project, including how rights types are assigned, please see our blog posts on copyright.
If you have any information regarding this work and rights to it, please contact copyright@brooklynmuseum.org.
RECORD COMPLETENESS
Not every record you will find here is complete. More information is available for some works than for others, and some entries have been updated more recently. Records are frequently reviewed and revised, and we welcome any additional information you might have.
