Jade pi

Late Neolithic period (5,000--1,800 B.C.)
Diameter: 36.6 cm, Thickness: 0.8--1.2 cm

The pi is a circular disk with a round orifice in the center. Its dimensions can vary greatly, and it has had various uses over the years. The smaller variety may have been used as jewelry or decorative ornaments. The larger ones were probably used as a symbol of power, position, and wealth. The pi may also have been used as currency or had a function similar to that of currency. It is likely that this appealing form originally represented the Chinese idea, "round like heaven," and was used as a ritual object in worshipping gods and ancestors.

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