Gui (ritual food vessel), 11th-10th century BCE
Unknown artist, Chinaexpand_more
Bronzeexpand_more
The John R. Van Derlip Fundexpand_more 2020.39
Not on Viewexpand_more
This vessel form, known as gui, was used to hold food in ritual ceremonies during the Bronze Age. The band under the lip is a pair of bifurcated dragons, whose rounded, undulant double body is patterned with intaglio tulip-shaped designs. In the frieze encircling the foot two pairs of S-shaped dragons, on each side of the body, are arranged around relief ridges coaxial with the horned dragon head in the upper border. The split representation of dragon begins to appear in the bronze decoration during the mid-Shang dynasty (c. 15th-14th century BCE). The fascinating design was adopted to decorate vessels in various forms, yet its connotation remains mysterious. One speculation holds that the inside of the vessel would correlate with the inside of the dragon and hold all of the power associated with the dragon.
Details
- Title
- Gui (ritual food vessel)
- Role
- Artist
- Accession Number
- 2020.39
- Curator Approved
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