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Goqing

19th century
On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 681
Carefully incised veins suggest a downwardly curving lotus leaf of dark nephrite jade. The goqing once sounded to announce the arrival and rank of a guest or to denote the length of a pause following the completion of a musical piece. The great importance of sonorous substances, such as wood and stones, among the percussion instruments of the Far East stems from the religious belief that nature itself speaks to the human ear through this vibrating matter.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: Goqing
  • Date: 19th century
  • Geography: Xianmen (formerly Amoy), Fujian, China
  • Culture: Chinese
  • Medium: Wood, metal, stone
  • Dimensions: Height: 19 in. (48.3 cm)
  • Classification: Idiophone-Struck-bar-stone
  • Credit Line: The Crosby Brown Collection of Musical Instruments, 1889
  • Object Number: 89.4.64
  • Curatorial Department: Musical Instruments

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