Accession Number
1960/2.104

Title
Adze

Artist(s)
Chinese

Artist Nationality
Chinese (culture or style)

Object Creation Date
1027 BCE - 771 BCE

Medium & Support
translucent white nephrite

Dimensions
3 13/16 in x 1 3/4 in x 1/16 in (9.7 cm x 4.5 cm x 0.2 cm);5 1/2 in (14 cm);3 9/16 in (9 cm);1 1/4 in (3.2 cm)

Credit Line
Museum purchase from the collection of Max Loehr

Subject matter
Adz, also spelled adze, hand tool for shaping wood. One of the earliest tools, it was widely distributed in Stone Age cultures in the form of a handheld stone chipped to form a blade. By Egyptian times it had acquired a wooden haft, or handle, with a copper or bronze blade set flat at the top of the haft to form a T. In this form the adz continued to be the prime hand tool for shaping and trimming wood. A log or other piece of timber was laid on the ground or floor, and the carpenter stood astride or on it, swinging the adz in a picklike action down and toward himself.

https://www.britannica.com/technology/adz

Primary Object Classification
Arms and Armor

Primary Object Type
ax

Additional Object Classification(s)
Ritual Object

Collection Area
Asian

Rights
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Objects We Use
adze
stone (worked rock)