Jade Scabbard Slide, mid-Western Han to Eastern Han dynasty, 140 BCE-220 CE-China Archive

Image Number: K1C002018N000000000PBB
Dynasty: Western Han dynasty
Category: Jades
Function: Sacrificial vessels
Material: Minerals/Jade Jewelry/Jade
Description:
Blue white jade with brown spots. The utensil is rectangular with a slightly curved front. There are three convex string patterns carved on it. The surface between the string patterns is embossed with curly cloud patterns, and one narrow end is carved with animal faces. Copper swords and iron swords are common in the Western Han Dynasty. Jade swords decorated with jade are rare. They are ritual tools to show the status of nobility. The complete jade sword has four jade components, namely, jade sword head, jade sword Tan (sword case), jade sword 璏, and jade sword Kua (sword 珌); The sword is bound with the scabbard by leveling the bottom. If the iron or copper sword is rusty, the brown iron or green copper often stains the bottom of the sword.