Cicada amulet
12th century - 10th century BCE
Jade cicadas were placed in the mouths of the dead as tongue amulets. This one has round eyes, a tiny beak-shaped mouth, and folded wings with abstract, grooved designs. Cicadas spend years underground before emerging—their unusual life cycle was a metaphor for resurrection and long symbolized a wish for rebirth or immortality. One thousand years after this piece was made, cicada amulets became part of a set of jade plugs for the ears, nostrils, and other orifices in sumptuous Han-dynasty (206 BCE–220 CE) burials.
Nephrite
2 x 1 1/16 x 1/4 in. (5.08 x 2.7 x 0.64 cm)
Eugene Fuller Memorial Collection
39.18
Photo: Elizabeth Mann
