Jade Cong tube, late Liangzhu culture, (ca. 2500-2200 B.C.E.)-China Archive

Material:

Description:
This piece may become the collection of the Qing Palace later, Therefore, it was lucky to retain most of the symbols carved on four sides without ever adding wooden seats or adding imperial poems. The whole vessel is made of thick, slightly high square cylinders. There are obvious hollows left by wire cutting on the surface. In addition to the upper and lower orifices, it is divided into seventeen sections, each section with four nearly 90 degree corners as the central axis, spreading the most simplified eyelet pattern to the left and right sides; A total of 68 eyelet lines were carved on the whole instrument. The straight grooves under the four orifices are all engraved with the symbol of connecting spirit, which is not clear. Only one side of the diamond inscription is complete, and the opposite side was originally engraved with the symbol “High Column and Altar” about 7.93cm long. Only the upper part of the high column is clear