Date: Jin (AD 1115-1234)
Dimensions: Length 8.8 cm, Width 3.6 cm
Material: Jade

• Object Type：
  • JADE
• Tag：
  • ornament hunting jin jade

The jade ware of the minorities of the Jin period had distinctive grassland themes. With designs of ‘Spring Water’ and ‘Autumn Mountain’, these ornaments reflect the hunting scenarios of the two seasons of the northern nomads. ‘Spring water’ depicts the spring hunting scene when the emperor and his men go to the lakeside to round up swans by releasing the fierce gyrfalcon to snap and bite the head of swan. When the swan dropped to the ground, the men would stab and then share the swan meat together. 
The spring water jade ornament adopts the approach of Qiao Se, meaning the smart arrangement of colour according to the texture and colour of the material. The scene of the black gyrfalcon preying on the white swan is carved and represented through the different colours of the jade, forming a sharp contrast, which creates an aesthetic appeal full of tragic feature.