3,000 Year Old Chinese Bronze Ox Seal! Translated! (03/07/2011)

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3,000 Year Old Chinese Bronze Ox Seal! Translated!

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3,000 Year Old Chinese Bronze Ox Seal! Translated!

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Sold Date: 03/07/2011
Channel: Online Auction
Source: eBay
Category: Ethnic, Folk & Native American Art

Houghton USA

Ancient Art, Antiques, & Fine Collectables

Ancient Chinese Bronze Ox Seal

Over 3,000 Years Old with Translation!!

This small, bronze seal is a wonderful example of early Chinese casting and culture. It has an ox on the top part of the square base. Chinese experts date this lovely little seal to the workmanship, casting style, and genre of either the late Shang Dynasty (1600BC--1046 BC) or the Zhou Dynasty (1045--256) of ancient China. The dates are approximate, as it is difficult to precisely date these ancient bronze artifacts when they have been seperated from other artifacts. I obtained it directly from a outstand dealer in China, and I Guarantee it to be 100% original and authentic.

English Translation

The old style, Chinese Seal Charaters are difficult to see in photo # 3 and also difficult to translate as I did not want to clean or disturb the bronze patina, but they too are 100% original and are typical of the period. The Chinese characters are a very old type and date back to about 1,500--1,000 BC. Here is my best literal translation of these 6 ancient characters.

"A farming hamlet gives five (unknown, but likely millet) crops that have been tied into bundles and one-half an ox as an exalted Heavenly gift."

What a super piece of ancient Chinese History that you can own today!!

Details

It measures approximately 1.5" square (38mm) x 1.25" tall (32mm). It weighs 107 grams or 3.8 oz. It has a wonderful old, patina that is absolutely fabulous: a greenish patina from the malachite in the surrounding soil and a bright blue color that is from the azurite in the soil. This combination of colors forms a fantastic patina that is typical of bronze that has been buried for over 3,000 years. Close examination with a microscope under natural and black light reveal it to be 100% authentic and cast by hand in a clay & sand mold.

In ancient China, the production of bronze was strictly regulated by the Emperor. Thus, the owner of this bronze seal or stamp would have had to have the approval of the royal house to have such a piece commissioned. Museums and modern archeological studies usually use the general term “copper alloy” instead of just the term “bronze” to describe these ancient treasures, as many other elements (such as tin, lead, zinc, iron, and even arsenic) were added to the copper to form different strengths of types of bronze items. Ancient bronze artifacts such as this seal are probably about 80% copper and 20% tin, while modern bronze is closer to 88% copper and 12% tin.

This ancient stamp has a beautiful, old patina with some signs of oxidation of the two main elements (tin and copper) that make up this mirror. One interesting property of bronze is that once it has oxidized superficially, a copper oxide layer is formed on the surface and essentially protects the object from further damaging corrosion. This protective layer turns in another compound, called copper carbonate for you scientists out there, that protects most bronze pieces from even corrosive saltwater.

Please examine the photos taken at 4x macro carefully as they are part of the description.

And please ask any questions before you buy. All sales are Final, unless I have grossly misrepresented this item!

I GUARANTEE this seal to be ancient and authetic! Thanks!

My price is at least 75 % off what this amazing little bronze seal would be priced at in a fine Gallery!!

Note: Please ask any questions you may have before you bid! Thanks for Looking!

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