Flower-Shaped Cup, Song Dynasty (960-1279). Jade, 5.1 x 6.4 cm. Gift of the Far Eastern Art Committee in honor of Henry B. Keep, 1978. Philadelphia Museum of Art, 1978-41-1.

This elegant, six-lobed cup is made from nephrite jade, a material venerated in China for its ritual significance, association with gentlemanly virtures, and physical properties, holding a place equivalent to that of gold in the West. Connoisseurs of the time appreciated this understated material and celebrated the purity of the form and texture of the stone, here emphasized by the absence of decoration in this cup.