LATE SHANG-WESTERN ZHOU DYNASTY, 12TH-8TH CENTURY BC

Jade spider carvings of such an early date are exceptionally rare. In her article “Jade Spiders and Praying Mantises of the Western Zhou Period (1046 – 771 BCE): Reconstructing an Ancient Cultural Mindset,” Ars Orientalis, vol. 41, 2012, p. 168, Chan Lai Pik illustrates two spider-shaped carvings, figs. 2 (a three-dimensional, realistic sculpture) and 3 (a symmetrical silhouette), from a tomb dated circa 850-771 BC of a noble of the state of Guo at Sanmenxia, Henan province. According to Chan, “only six spider-related artifacts from the pre-Qin era (i.e. before 221 BCE) have been found in the world; these include the two carvings from Sanmenxia. The third is the willow-shaped bronze scabbard with the spider decoration in the Freer collection (fig. 4). The fourth is an undated bronze ornament in the Von der Heydt Museum, Vienna (fig. 5). The fifth is an Ordos plaque excavated in Siberia, dated circa 500 BCE-circa 300 BCE (fig. 6). The sixth is a jade plaque decorated with an incised symmetrical spider motif excavated from Jinsha archaeological site, dated circa 1100 BCE-circa 850 BCE (fig. 7).”