A rare archaic pale green jade notched disc (Yabi), Neolithic period, Miaodigou Phase II / Longshan culture

Robert H. Ellsworth, New York.

Anthony Carter Ltd., London.

Notched discs with four angular notches to the outer edge are extremely rare. See a closely related example excavated from tomb no. 100 at the burial site of Qingliangsi, Ruicheng in Shanxi province from the Miaodigou Phase II culture illustrated in Gu Fang, The Complete Collection of Jades Unearthed in China, vol. 3 Shanxi, Beijing, 2005, pl. 3. Representing a pivotal transitional phase in China's Neolithic period, the Miaodigou Phase II culture marks the evolution from the Yangshao cultural tradition to the emergence of the Longshan culture.

For an example with less prominent notches, see one attributed to the Longshan culture, previously in the Lantien Shanfang Collection, sold at Christie's Hong Kong, 27th November 2019, lot 2750; another, with a less angular outer edge, also attributed to the Longshan culture, from the same collection, sold in the same sale, lot 2751.