商 骨簪|Hairpin
Unknown Artist
13th–11th century BCE
Medium
Bone
Dimensions
L. 6 5/16 in. (16 cm); W. 1 3/8 in. (3 cm)
Classification
Bone
Culture & Period
China · Shang dynasty (ca. 1600–1046 B.C.)
Department
Asian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Ernest Erickson Foundation, 1985
Accession Number
1985.214.116
Art Historical Context
This elegant bone hairpin, crafted during China's Shang dynasty (ca. 1600–1046 B.C.), hails from the 13th–11th BCE—a golden age of early Bronze Age innovation. Measuring 6 5/16 long and 1 3/8 inches wide, slender form suggests it was designed to secure elaborate hairstyles, a mark of status among the elite. Now housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Art Department as a gift from the Ernest Foundation in 1985, it offers a glimpse into the refined daily life of ancient Chinese aristocracy. Bone, a readily available yet challenging medium, was skillfully carved in the Shang period, showcasin...