The Timeline of Art History   The Metropolitan Museum of Art
World MapsTimelines / RegionsThematic EssaysWorks of ArtIndex  
Spearhead, Late Jomon period (ca. 1500–1000 B.C.)
Japan
Stone; L. 3 1/8 in. (7.9 cm)
The Harry G. C. Packard Collection of Asian Art, Gift of Harry G. C. Packard, and Purchase, Fletcher, Rogers, Harris Brisbane Dick and Louis V. Bell Funds, Joseph Pulitzer Bequest, and The Annenberg Fund Inc. Gift, 1975 (1975.268.200)

Careful workmanship and attention to the natural beauty of the material are evident in many of the tools, weapons, and ornaments found in Jomon sites. Stone tools, which were first roughly fashioned in Paleolithic times, were by the Jomon period meticulously chipped and smoothly polished, attesting to the ancient roots of Japan's renowned penchant for refined design and workmanship. This hunting implement, for example, is characterized by a carefully formed leaf shape and evenly beveled edges that required great skill and patience to create.


Open full-size image



  • Related Timeline(s)

    Related Index Terms

    Material and Technique

    Object

    Technical Glossary




    Print
    Close
    Spearhead, Late Jomon period (ca. 1500–1000 B.C.)
    Japan
    Stone; L. 3 1/8 in. (7.9 cm)
    The Harry G. C. Packard Collection of Asian Art, Gift of Harry G. C. Packard, and Purchase, Fletcher, Rogers, Harris Brisbane Dick and Louis V. Bell Funds, Joseph Pulitzer Bequest, and The Annenberg Fund Inc. Gift, 1975 (1975.268.200)