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standing horse with legs slightly splayed outward; wide eyes; open mouth with exposed teeth; upward-pointed ears; green patina with white, blue and red pigment traces

Celestial Horse, 25-220

China

G215

Vessel in the shape of an owl. Two flanges, one ending just under the beak in front and the other continuing to the top of the head in back, have alternating straight and L-shaped scores, those on the front flange being much the deeper of the two. The tail, with a scored flange border, forms the back support of the vessel. Apart from the realistically-formed feet, the bird is strongly stylized. The body is completely covered by rows of scales except for the shoulder line, expressed by a vigorous spiral, and the wings quills, rendered by bands filled with antithetical spirals. Patina green.

Zun wine vessel in the shape of an owl, 13th-12th century BCE

Unknown

Not on View
This vessel is a remarkable example of its type, and of perfect workmanship. The body is divided into three horizontal belts by narrow, bare interstices uninterrupted by the scored flanges which, with the handle of the vessel, delimit four panels. The plain handle has an animal's head with zigzag lines across the nose and C-shaped horns with parallel lines in thin, thread relief. The lid is partly shaped as a plastic animal. The head, with the forehead lozenge and bottle horns of a t'ao-t'ieh, has other, more realistic details well-modelled ears and a mouth with saw-like teeth. The body is that of a long-drawn-out dragon in low relief reclining along the center of the lid. The central flange, curving with the body in the looped tail, has straight and T-shaped scores. A t'ao-t'ieh and various types of dragons figure in a decor scheme that covers almost the entire body of the vessel. The bodied t'ao-t'ieh with S-shaped horns in the middle belt is flanked by strongly stylized head turning dragons. Also strongly stylized are the dragons in the foot belt, which are similar to those on vessels 50.46.43, Karlgren #11, and 50.46.89, Karlgren #21. The consecutive dragons in the neck belt are not identical. To the right is an ordinary beaked dragon with recumbent C-shaped horn and a small vertical crest. The dragon under the spout of the vessel has no crest. Its horn is heart-shaped, and it has the drawn-out, pointed eye of the t'ao-t'ieh below. Its enormous beak is drawn out to parallel the curve in the rim. Inside the curve of the beak is a small, head turning dragon. The big dragon on the lid has spirals at the base of the horns and a single scale between parallel zigzag lines that flank the central flange, forming the common lozenge pattern. The legs, in flat relief, flank the big dragon, thier tails meeting at the end of the lid. Patina light blue-green.

Gong wine vessel, late 13th century BCE

China

Not on View
This fantastic creature might be a playful descendant of the water buffalo, Karlgren Number 90 (50.46.113). Here, however, the sculptural effect is achieved through the long sweeping curves of the body. The spirals emphasizing the shoulders and hindquarters are broad bands with a modified scale pattern which recurs on the tail. The shoulder is further emphasized by a raised ring with turquoise inlay. The eyes, with brows of rope pattern, are also inlaid with turquoise. Further elements of the Huai style are the cowrie band around the neck, granulation on the ears and the tufts of the hind legs, and the tail ending in a bird's head. Patina light green.

Mythological beast, 5th century BCE

China

Not on View
The rich decor of the vessel covers every surface except the backs of the stubby legs. The ground is squared spirals throughout. On the long side of the body the median line is marked by a free animal's head on the neck belt and by a t'ao-t'ieh in low relief on the bottom. The shoulder line of the owl is boldly stylized into an enormous spiral, the wing quills emerging in narrow parallel bands. Behind the quills the tail protrudes in a short downward hook. The shoulder, neck and quills are covered with scales. Two birds with cleft crests, bottle horns, and tails adorned with scales, flank the free head on the neck of the vessel. Coiled dragons decorate the front sides of the legs, and the bottom surface of the vessel is covered with scales in parallel rows. The whole area is bordered at the rim by a circle band which appears also on the adjoining rim of the lid. The owl has enormous eyes, and the horns are the large, C-shaped type of the ordinary t'ao-t'ieh. Patina bluish-green

You wine vessel in double-owl shape, 12th-11th century BCE

China

Not on View
The decor of incised lines and spirals on this animal recall those on the Middle Chou water buffalo, Karlgren Number 90 (50.46.113). It should be noted, however, that the spirals on shoulders and hind quarters area here centered by a raised ring with turquoise inlay. These decor figures might point to a similar epoch were it not for certain details that are a clear indication of a later date. The rope pattern around the eyes, on the eyebrows, the fetlocks, and on the dragon decorating the socket, as well as the granulation on the front of the ears and the head of the dragon, point to the Early Huai Style Period. The socket on the back suggests that the tiger served as a podium. Patina bluish- green.

Tiger, 6th-5th century BCE

China

Not on View
The principle surface displays a rectangular field of interlocked T's on a ground of squared spirals framed on three sides by rows of spikes. Scored flanges at the four corners of the vessel are supplemented in the upper belt by additional flanges which thus divide it into eight panels. Antithetical, long-tailed birds flank the short flanges forming the central ridge of a rudimentary t'ao-t'ieh mask. Hanging blades appear on the cylindrical legs, and disfigured dragons in flat relief on the outer surface of the upright handles. Patina green

Fangding food vessel, 11th century BCE

China

Not on View
bronze budhist temple bell; tall football shaped body with flat top; two dragons turned away from each other form hanger at top center; sides decorated with two rectangular fields striped with three bands of three raised circular bumps

Bo bell, late 6th-5th century BCE

China

Not on View
Kuei without handles. The vessel is divided into four vertical panels by heavy flanges with alternate straight and T-shaped scores. In two places in the neck band the flanges give way to free animals' heads. The features of the bodied t'ao-t'ieh in the main belt are similar to those seen on vessels 50.46.48 and 50.46.86 (Karlgren numbers 7, 11, 30), except that the mouth line is S-shaped and shows the teeth. The dragons in the foot belt have the mouth of the ordinary gaping dragon, but the head turns downward, thus differing slightly from the usual trunked dragon.

Gui food vessel, 12th century BCE

China

Not on View
green ox with attachable cart consisting of yoke, 2 side rails and 2 wheels, with accompanying free-standing farmer

Cart with Ox and Farmer, 1st century

China

G215

The graceful shape of a Hu flask is accentuated by the bold and forceful handle terminating in heavy animal masks with bottle horns. Springing from the space between the horns is a thick flange, deeply scored, that out-lines the sweep of the handle up and over the body of the vessel. The handle is attached to the domed and collarless lid by a curled-up gaping dragon, with a double row of scales, whose body encircles the conocal knob of the lid. The vessel is sparingly decorated with hands of pointed spirals on the lid, neck, and foot. Beneath the spirals on the neck belt is a band of dragonized t'ao-t'ieh in low relief. Patina blue-green with marks of mat wrapping.

You wine vessel, 12th century BCE

China

Not on View
The tang of this weapon displays the same unexplained dented contour as that on 50.46.21. The shape has been modified through the lengthening of the lower lug into an extended support along the shaft. A long slender leaf follows the curve of the blade. Above this decor, toward the base of the tang, is the eye and rolled-up nose of a dragon's head, its plastically lifted hord decorated with snakes.

Dagger-axe (ge), 11th century BCE

China

Not on View
The head of a bird projects from the socket of this cap, which has a design of highly stylized birds inlaid with thin bands of gold and gold wire. The cap would have been used on such a weapon as that in Karlgren, Plate 101 (50.46.40). Patina grayed light green. Bronze with gold inlay.

Butt cap for spear haft, 5th-4th century BCE

China

Not on View
A flange with alternating straight and T-shaped scores of the type commonly found on early ritual vessels decorates the upper idge of this weapon. Along the blade proper, just below the flange, is a band of head-turning dragons with bottle horns on a ground of squared spirals. This decor is in low relief. Patina green.

Sacrificial knife, 12th century BCE

China

Not on View
The bovine head of this example has high, spreading horns and the forehead lozenge of a t'ao-t'ieh. Directly below is a band of rising blades with spiral filling. The terminal border of the pole top also has a spiral decro. PatinaGreen.

Cow-head finial, 12th century BCE

China

Not on View
The shape of this vessel, called a Kien in its inscription, is very like that of the earlier Kuei. Fundamentally a Kien was a basin for holding water, but it is more probable that this example was not a profane vessel, but a ritual one. A companion vessel, exactly like this one and with the same inscription, is in the Freer Gallery. The decor is desposed in three belts separated by bands of plait-pattern, each strand in the plait made up of a number of very thin threads. A similar plait appears on the foot rim. The neck rim is adorned with a narrow band of cowries. The top and bottom belts on the body carry interlaced dragons, the head of every second one being close to the lower margin, the intervening heads being close to the upper. In the broad central belt are t'ao-t'ieh heads, every second seen right as the vessel stands, the intervening ones seen from above. This intricate scheme of interlaced bodies is clearly to be seen in Karlgren, number 51, figures 53 and 54. The four stout handles have t'ao-t'ieh heads at the top. This creature, with broad rolled up nose and a protruding, hooked crest in place of the ancient forehead sheild, is very different from the early ogre head. A row of stylized cicadas adorns the front and sides of the handles, and there are interlaced dragons on the flat, movable rings suspended from two of the handles. The technical execution of these decor elements narrow bare borders to every band, the center filled with either spirals or volutes with triangles, is exceedingly close to that on vessels of the Li-yu find (Umehara, Etude, plates 1 ff.) This is particularly interesting since Li-yu is in northern Shansi and the present vessels, according to Jung Keng (Shang-Chou, Volume 1, Page 470), were found in Huei-hien in northern Honan, thus both belong to the northern sphere. C.F. Yau suggests Kin-ts'un as the locale of this basin. Patina Light green with patches of blue. The inscription reads 'Kien-vessel [to be] handled [i.e. used] by the nobleman Chi.' For a discussion of the inscript

Jian water basin, 500-400 BCE

China

Not on View
The decor of this bell, in cross section a pointed oval with an arched line at the bottom, is quite complicated. The shaft has three decor belts and one bulky ring with a vertically placed suspending device formed by a contorted tiger. The beast stands with body half raised against the shaft, its claws pressing against the lower of the three decor belts. The upper body and neck turn backward, with the tiger biting its own tail. The loop thus completed serves for the suspension of the bell by a strap passed through the loop. Of the three decor belts on the shaft, the upper displays a t'ao-t'ieh (to be seen from above). The two lower belts have dragons that turn alternately upward and downward. The bulbous ring supporting the tiger is decorated with a loosely twined cord pattern and interlaced lines. The top of the bell has rolled up dragons, their bodies formed of bands filled with voluted and triangles. In the two belts between the spikes on the outer surface of the bell are dragons placed alternately upward and downward. The decor field of the lower part of the bell is a magnificant specimen of gaudy Huai decor in which a t'ao-t'ieh bites on the body of a bird-dragon with a big, hooked beak, an S-shaped crest, and a heart-shaped horn. This involved and elaborate decor is carried out with the brilliance and dazzeling skill of the Huai-style bronze art. Patina green and blue-green.

Yong bell, late 6th-5th century BCE

China

Not on View
Kia with four spread legs, inscribed. The decor of the body, S-shaped in profile, displays the usual elements of a bodied t'ao-t'ieh flanked by vertical dragons and, in the neck belt, beaked dragons with a band of rising blades filled with disolved cicada figures. The flanges on the body are low, narrow and unscored. Scores appear, instead, on the horns of the large t'ao-t'ieh and on parts of the antithetical beaked dragons appearing in a complicated arrangement on the outer surfaces of the legs. On the top of the handle is a t'ao-t'ieh with C-shaped horns, its mouth gaping over a finely-drawn cicada. The uprights, square at the base, with an incurving profile, are decorated with a spiral band, slender rising blades, and t'ao-t'ieh masks on the tops. Patina grey-green

Fangjia wine vessel, 13th-12th century BCE

China

Not on View
Ting with supporting Animals, inscribed. Boldly modelled birds, hooked beaks facing outward and big horns facing inward, support a broad, shallow bowl with uprights. The body decor is in three belts, the two lower ones interupted by flanges corresponding to the supporting birds. The middle belt, of realistic cicades in rounded relief on spiral ground, is bordered by narrower bands with big eyes connected by diagonal lines, C-figures, and fork-like elements which may represent strongly disfigured dragons. Patina grey-green patches of brighter green

Ding food vessel, 11th-10th century BCE

China

Not on View
Thick, unusually heavy flanges, narrowing toward the vessel, divide the foot, bulb, and neck into panels. They are scored with alternating straight and T-shaped scores, the stem of the T turned inward instead of outward in the usual fashion. This is a most eccentric feature. The decor, on a ground of squared spirals, covers almost the entire vessel. The t'ao-t'ieh on foot and bulb are similar but vary in detail.The foot monster has a lower forehead shield, no eyebrows and S-shaped horns, as against the recumbent C-shaped horns of the beast on the bulb. The remnants of a vertical body and a leg are the same on both. In the lower neck belt are antithetical beaked dragons. Above are blunt, sturdy rising blades with a decor to be seen from the top. Flanking the flange, as a central line, are two antithetical dragons with strongly hooked beaks and C-shaped horns, their bodies going down (with a leg half way and a tuft lower down) meeting at the end of the blade. Together their heads form a t'ao-t'ieh (observe the ears in the outer border of the blade). In the decor throughout, the principal raised features, shaped as broad, flat bands, are quite smooth except for a few scores on the horns of the bulb t'ao-t'ieh. Patina green with patches of red. The symbol in the inscription may be an abbreviation of the graph lu. For a comment see Karlgren, Number 18 (50.46.97).

Zun wine vessel, 11th century BCE

China

Not on View
Ritual urn, Tou form; two ring handles attached to body of vessel with an elephant head (?) motif. Trumpet base, truncated trumpet finial. The bronze was lightly covered with silver before being washed with gold. Gold has worn off in spots revealing silver green iridescence; corrosion advanced to such a stage that handles have become attached to body of urn. Tou belong to the yi class, and were used to contain grain offered to the dead. Excavated, with other objects, rom a tomb in Honan, 1929. N.B.similar piece in Grenville Winthrop Collection, New York

Dou ritual vessel, 4th century BCE

China

Not on View
The pronounced sperical shape of this flask is most unusual. the decor is disposed in four broad belts set off from each other by narrow, bare, ridged bands bordering a single line of spirals. The belts, and the rising blades on the neck, are filled awith the comma pattern. The t'ao-t'ieh on the ring handle has scale bands on top and two big scales under the eyes. Patina blue-green.

Hu wine vessel, 4th century BCE

China

Not on View
This unique vessel displays a technical perfection which proves that the artisans of Early Zhou sometimes fully equaled their Yin predecessors in taste and skill. The usual division into four panels is suggested exclusively by the free animals' heads alternating, in the neck region, with the handles. The decor ground, of rounded and acute angled spirals, carries an eyed band with diagonals in the foot belt and antithetical tail-raising birds in flat relief on the belly. The crests of these extraordinary birds split up in three strands, the middle one a short, spearlike point; the other two forming long plumes, one falling staight down past the turned head and in front of the breast, the other going forward past (and parallel with) the beak, then rising in a bold sweep above the head and descending in two parts behind the first strand. Thus three parallel bands descend, the outer two adorned with rounded figures reminiscent of those of a peacock. For comment of these figures see Karlgren, number 29, 50.46.120. From the raised tail three bands descend in a fashion exactly similar to those of the crest. The animal's head on the handle has large tusks protruding at the sides. The hook on the bottom is reminiscent of the bird representation often seen on Kuei handles. patina pale green with patches of blue green. The meaning of the inscription is ' The King attacked Tsi-yu and went out and attacked Naohei. When he came [back], he made liao-sacrifice [burnt-offering] in Tsung Chou and presented to [me], Kuo Po X, cowries, ten double strings. [I] presume in response to extol the king's grace, and so I have made my accomplished dead father's precious Kuei vessel. May for a myriad years sons and grandsons forever treasure and use it.' For comment on the inscription, see Karlgren, number 36 (50.46.119). The birds on the Kuei have a clase parallel on a 'YU' in the Simitomo Collection (Senoku, Volume 2, Plate 67) and on a 'TSUN' in the Imperial Collection, but are, for the rest, unique. Mr. Loo stated that this vessel and th

Gui food vessel, 10th century BCE

China

Not on View
This small sculpture of a kneeling man holding a tube-like vessel in his extended hands is one of a group of similar figures that may have served as torch bearers in a tomb. The sensitively modelled face, with an expression at once tentative and hopeful lends credibility to this supposition. The figure is clothed in a close-fitting garment that wraps from left to right in a broad overlap and is belted with a narrow band. The head-covering, rather like an open helmet, is broad at the back and rises to a peak-like top before descending in a narrow, tounge-shaped band to the forehead. It is bound to the head by a strap that goes down in front of the ears and under the chin. A second strap passes around the head from the forehead to the occiput. This figure is one of a group of bronze sculptures found in the Han family tombs a Kin-ts'un near Lo-yang and reported by W. C. White in Tombs of Old Lo-Yang. The artistic tradition of the early Yin culture, modified by an approach to nature, still persists in some of these small bronze sculptures from the old Lo-yang area. Their general characteristics - the unvarying block-like form, the broad type with large round eyes, the details of costume, particularly the head gear, reflect a new interest in and a closer observation of nature. Such figures constitute the links between early Yin sculptures and those of Han time. Essential characteristics of the earlier works do persist, but in a modified form. One discerns also in these small works, as in some other early Chinese bronzes, a resemblance to certain examples of pre-Columbian art -- a kind of parallelism which points to a similar artistic disposition or a common origin, rather than to any direct influence or intercommunication between these centers of art so widely separated in time and space. However this paralleleism came about, it is clear that the sculptural products of Yin-Chou art reflect traditions of style no longer to be found in those of Han time. Patina green

Kneeling figure, 4th century BCE

China

Not on View
Wine vessel; bronze with gold, silver, and copper inlay. This vessel, variously called Hu, Lei, and Min is closely related to the Ting inlaid with silver, Karlgren Number 47 (50.46.76), and may possibly be part of the same set. The decor of the several belts is largely based on single and double volutes and volutes with triangles. These typical elements of the Huai decor must, to a degree, be extremely corrupted and geometricized derivatives of zoomorphic motifs (dragons and birds). The moveable ring handles, with an inlaid pattern, are fixed in the mouths of silver t'ao-t'ieh masks applied to the shoulder. The inlay in this decor belt includes gold as well as silver; the remainder is in silver only. This wine vessel is one of the most splendid examples of Late Chou bronze art and the inlay technique. Patina dark brown with green patches.

Lei wine vessel, late 4th century BCE

China

Not on View
This bell, in cross section a pointed oval with an arched line at the bottom has a bottle-shaped handle that is most unusual. The decor field, confined to the body of the bell, is filled with granulation. It displays a variation of the 'volute with angle' theme; every two such figures combine into larger compounds, the whole resulting in a lozenge pattern. The border is partly a running spiral pattern and partly dissolved dragon figures. At the lower corners are sinuously drawn birds with S- or heart shaped horns. The mask of a playful t'ao-t'ieh must be seen from above. Patina brownish green with brighter green patches.

Zheng ritual bell, 5th century BCE

China

Not on View
A vivid impression of life and movement is achieved by the schematic treatment of the legs, the ponderous body, and the summarily modelled head. The eyes, under flat, curving horns, are extraordinarily expressive. the incised decor of the body, with thin, slanting lines arranged in rows or grouped around a circular motif, stems from an earlier element that appears on the legs and throat of the early Middle Chou figure of a buffalo (Karlgren, Plates 102, 103). The socket on the beast's back indicates that the animal has served as a podium. The body is hollow and open, with traces of clay inside the belly. Patina grey-green.

Water buffalo support, 6th-5th century BCE

China

Not on View
A beast with the forehead shield and ears of a t'ao-t'ieh has a scaled body coiled tortuously around a bird(?) and terminated by two bold tufts. A small tiger (?) clings to the beast's haunches. The scale decor is inlaid alternately with gold and turquoise. A spiral decor is rendered partly in gold inlay and partly in niello. Patina dark green with small areas of reddish brown.

Buckle in the form of coiled dragon, 5th-4th century BCE

China

Not on View
Beneath a broad, shallow bowl is a rounded compartment, possibly for charcoal. The decor in the neck belt is the usual animal triple band violently dissolved antithetical dragons combining to make a t'ao-t'ieh. The bowl is supported by three figures, (demons?) functioning as legs. The heads, much elongated, are human but horned. The bodies display a subtle flow of S-curves from neck to curled-back legs. Three openings in the heating (?) compartment display t'ao-t'ieh figures in incised lines, one of them giving the impression of being detached from the bowl. The upright handles are topped by two confronted birds in the round, their curved beaks raised high. Patina blue-green.

Ritual Food Vessel, 12th century BCE

China

Not on View
The foot belt, divided into two panels by shallow flanges, displays long-drawn, antithetical gaping dragons. The neck belt, correspondingly divided by two free animals' heads, carries S-shaped, turning dragons with bug C-shaped crests. The division of the body into panels is achieved entirely by the decor, executed in low, flat relief on a ground of spirals. It consists of pairs of antithetical, tail-raising birds, their crests cleft in three strands. One slants gracefully backward; the second rises over the head in a bold bow and drops to the feet of the bird; the third curves down over the bird's back. From the raised tail a big plume descends to the feet in a C-shape. Tufts appear in the middle of the big crest, and on the descending tail. the effect of this antithetical arrangement of crests and tail plumes is that of rudimentary t'ao-t'ieh masks the nose at the bottom, the hooked forehead shield, and the big horns in reclining C-shape. On the neck of the bird is a scale of the type often found on snakes and owls, and perhaps of some magical significance. Antithetical birds reappear in the rising blades on the neck of the vessel. Here, however, the club-like crest leans forward and a detached horn rises to the top of the blade. Patina blue-green. The inscription reads 'The Prince has made the precious vessel; may sons and grandsons forever use it.'

Zun wine vessel, 10th century BCE

China

Not on View
Ox (water buffalo), recumbent. The pose of this buffalo, with legs folded in under the body and head turned to the side, is typical of the northern nomad style and may be influenced by the Northern art. The decor is executed in broad bands in flat relief on a ground of spirals unobtrusive in comparison with the bold spirals emphasizing the shoulders and hind quarters of the beast. This decor of broad bands in spiral form is reminiscent, in its use of tufts, of earlier dragon decor. The slanting figures the hind legs and the chest recall those on the famous tigers in the Freer gallery. The holes in the back of the buffalo indicate that the piece had some practical use, as yet undetermined. Patina green

Recumbant water buffalo, 9th century BCE

China

Not on View
The decor of bodied t'ao-t'ieh and beaked dragons is in rounded relief on a ground of squared spirals. Eight flanges divide the vessl into eight panels. T'ao-t'ieh masks and a flange appear at the tops ofthe four cylindrical legs. The upright handles are decorated with spirals on the outer surface. Patina pale green, red patches.

Ding food vessel, 12th-11th century BCE

China

Not on View
With the exception of its cylindrical base, which is shorter and broader than that of the pole top shown with it (Karlgren Plate 95), this example closely resembles its companion (50.46.28). It too, has a pellet in its body. Patina blue-green.

Chariot Finials with Bird, 11th century BCE

China

Not on View

Chariot shaft socket, 13th-12th century BCE

China

Not on View
Square ting, rectangular, inscribed. The decor of the principal surface is confined to the upper belt, where rudimentary t'ao-t'ieh masks are flanked by head-turning dragons in flat relief on a ground of squared spirals. The heavy, segmented flanges at the corners of the vessel reappear as the central ridges of the forceful t'ao-t'ieh heads on the legs. Patina gray-green

Fangding food vessel, late 11th century BCE

China

Not on View
The purpose served by this object is altogether unknown. A rectangular handle projects from the domed base, and the openwork on the body suggests that the bird may have been a rattle or a bell. The whorl circle on the base, the crest and horns, and the flange of T-shaped scores along the back, indicate an early period. Patina green.

Bird on a Domed Base, 11th century BCE

China

Not on View
The handle is divided into three sections: a t'ao-t'ieh mask, summarily executed, just behind the bowl; a band of lozenges with a plian, narrow central ridge midway on the handle; and a rather elaborate arrangement of dragons at the end of the handle. The animal forming the terminal curve is a dragon with a bottle horn and a body that bends violently to the left before rising vertically with a leg and claw on the outer (left) side. Toward the end it cleaves, one strand curling out into an ordinary tail, the other going on and ending in a second dragon head at the base of the mid-handle lozenge field. This dragon head has a big crest falling down along the back. The crest takes the shape of a bird, with a big V-shaped horn and a small crest connecting with the forehead of the first dragon a striking and ingenious composition. The dragon body is adorned with rows of scales and with alternating straight and T-shaped scores in the manner of a flange.

Ladle, 11th century BCE

China

Not on View
In as much as Huai style vessels of hybrid character cannot be positively assigned to the definite classes of the ritually stricter early epochs, no special name is given to this specimen. The decor, in five successive belts, is a pattern of interlaced dragons executed in narrow, flat double bands. The eyes and the points where the tails of the upper and lower dragons interlace are accented by high, wart-like buttons. Stout handles on the shoulder of the vessel are surmounted by a t/ao-t'ieh head archaic to the point of having recumbent C-shaped horns which are, however, adorned with big tufts. The neck and the lower band of the body are bare.

Lei wine vessel, 6th century BCE

China

Not on View
An eccentric combination of four masks occurs on this bronze. A forceful t'ao-t'ieh head with recumbent C-shaped horns, the borders decorated with straight and T-shaped scores, appears on one side of the top. This monster bites on a human head with the broad nose typical of many early masks. On the other side a ram's head, with horns turned down, bites on a head resembling a t'ao-t'ieh but with a raised elephant's trunk instead of the usual ridge in the central line. This remarkable and unusual piece is a powerful example of early Chinese sculpture. Patina green.

Chariot Finial, 11th-10th century BCE

China

Not on View
Two owls coalesced back to back form a vessel supported by short, stout legs. The bird's body, with wings executed in low relief accented by a few modelling lines, is formed by the belly of the vessel. The domed lid represents the head, with a coarsly modelled, turned-up beak. Instead of the features of a bird, however, it carries the familiar t'ao-t'ieh in flat relief. The knob, with a conical top, just clears the top of a bow handle, which ends on each side in a forceful animal's head eith forehead lozenge and bottle horns, the latter incised with spirals and zigzags. The bow handle carries three lozenges in high, angular relief. Between two such lozenges appear two cicadas facing away from each other, their tails coalesced. A smaller animal in low relief appears in the space between the end lozenge and the big head. Patina Light green.

Wine vessel in double owl shape, 12th-11th century BCE

China

Not on View
The sculpture quality of these dashing beasts is admirably conveyed by their carriage, the proud pose of their heads, and the almost arrogant suppleness of their bodies. The forceful comma-shapes of the tails and their jaunty tufts, as well as the double-rope pattern on the mustachios, give ample proof that, in spite of the scale that, in these creatures must be dated later than Middle Chou. Patina grey-green

Winged dragon, one of a pair, 5th-4th century BCE

China

Not on View
The bowl, in the broad and bulky shape of the Huai style, is supported by four human figures with horned animals' heads. The rigid ring handles have an out-curving lower projection which, with the outer bend of the ring, forms a dragon with a curled-up tail. This dragon has a head like a t'ao-t'ieh. The ring-shaped top of the lid, adorned with a triple-strand plait pattern in openwork, is affixed to the lid with a row of small props. The close affinity of this vessel to one almost exactly similar in the Royal Ontario Museum is interesting in view of the fact that the latter is known to have come from the Kin-ts'un tombs (Ca.450-230 B.C.). Patina green.

Covered zhou ritual food vessel, 475-221 BCE

China

Not on View
The pierced cove has a decor of stylized mountain peaks which is repeated on the base of the vessel. The rim of the cover is decorated with a narrow band of thin, elongated triangles. the decor for the bowl displays a band of two rows of leaf-shaped motifs, those in the upper row springing from the function of those in the lower row. These motifs have narrow bands of striated lines forming a double-spiral motif in the center of the leaf. Above this decor band is a narrow belt of incised lozenges. Patina greyed-green with patches of sharper green and red.

Boshanlu (Hill Censer), 1st century BCE

China

Not on View
This pole top and its companion (50.46.23) resemble the two scored flanges (50.46.46, 50.46.91). In this instance, however, the whole conception is simpler. The bird on the present pole top has only a lightly scored crest that turns up in a short hook at the back. It also has a pellet in the body, thus making it a rattle or a bell. Patina blue-green.

Chariot Finial with Bird, 11th century BCE

China

Not on View
The name Kuei for this vessel type is well established in the early literature. The surfaces of the vessel are divided into four vertical panels by four flanges on the foot, two flanges and two handles on the body. These narrow, thin flanges contrast contrast sharply with the heavy handles and their massive bovine heads. The principal figures in the decor, executed in low relief except for the strongly protruding eyes, are so covered with adorning lines that they tend to merge with the ground of squared spirals. In the foot belt are rudimentary t'ao-t'ieh masks, the central line formrd by two of the flanges, and two consecutive, head-turning dragons with C-shaped horns. The mask t'ao-t'ieh on the belly, with ordinary features strongly detatched, is flanked by vertical dragons. The flanges form the centers of two such t'ao-tieh, the handles of two other masks in which the face (nose and hooked forehead shield) has been cleft, leavint an interstice as broad as the handles between the two halves. This space under the handles is decorated with a bovine head in flat relief, thus creating a small t'ao-t'ieh inside a larger one. The neck belt displays dragons with oversized beaks. Patina blackish.

Gui food vessel, 11th century BCE

China

Not on View
The bowl is decorated in flat, band relief two belts with vertical scales below a broad upper belt of S-figures finished at each end with big tufts. These are probably remnants of strongly deformed dragons. At the end of the spout this band terminates in a dragon with a rolled-up nose. The scale bands stop short of this point and two large scales, placed crosswise, fill out the space. The legs are unusual in that those in front have a dragon's head, like that in the neck belt, whereas the hind leg is adorned with a big spiral such as usually emphasizes the hind quarters of an animals. The two legs have thus to be taken together as a whole the front and hind part of one animal. For other examples see Eumorfopoulos, Volume 1, Plate 45, and BMFEA, Volume 8, Plate 45. The rather stiff legs end in feet coarsely drawn like two comma-shaped claws. The handle is finished at the top with an animal's head displaying an unusual and highly decorative feature big horns shaped as two back-to-back birds. Patina green. For comment on the inscription, see Karlgren number 45 (50.46.44) For a discussion of this vessel type, see Karlgren number 313 (50.46.104)

Yi water vessel, 9th-8th century BCE

China

Not on View
The profile of the body is S-shaped with the inward curvature placed close to the rim of the vessel. Dragonized t'ao-t'ieh (winged-dragon type) and rising blades with stylized cicadas decorate the neck belt. The body t'ao-t'ieh, on a ground of squared spirals, displays unusual features horns with the alternate T-shaped and straight scores usually associated with flanges, and a hybrid forehead shield with the upper part hooked and the lower half drawn as the rounded-top shield. Also to be noted is the small vertical dragon beneath the tail of the cleft t'ao-t'ieh under the handle. For a discussion of this element, see Karlgren, Number 11, Plate 14 (50.46.43). The handle, with a bovine head at the top, terminates with curved legs ending in hoofs on the sides. Underneath, in the place for an inscription, is a human figure in flat relief on a spiral ground. Patina grey-green and blue.

Jia wine vessel, 12th century BCE

China

Not on View
Low, narrow flanges, corresponding to the legs, form the central ridges in t'ao-t'ieh figures on a ground of squared spirals. The t'ao-t'ieh of the belly is the ordinary, bodied type with C-shaped horns, hooked forehead shield, and strongly protruding eyes. It is flanked by vertical gaping dragons. Dragonized t'ao-t'ieh, the halves fromed as winged dragons, appear on a ground of squared spirals in the neck belt. Patina green with patches of red.

Liding food vessel, 12th-11th century BCE

China

Not on View
This covered cylindrical toilet box, supported by three small feet in the form of bears, is gilt with decor patterns executed in incised lines. there are two ring handles suspended from t'ao-t'ieh masks on the vessel and a third ring handle on the lid, which is further adorned by three birds, reduced and highly stylized, in the round. The neck and foot belts bordering the main decor band display the 'triple lozenge' figure common on the Huai style mirrors and immensely popular throughout the Han era. The scene portrayed on the body presents various animals- birds, deer, bears- moving through a field of hills and drifting clouds. the treatment is spirited and free, with nothing in it of the symmetry one de rigeur in the bronze decor. The long, fluid lines are adorned with the 'han curl border' (for comment see BMFEA, Volume 13, pages 97,98). Patina light green at feet and on the lid animals.

Toilet box (lian), 1st-2nd century

China

Not on View
The Pan of the Yin era do not usually have handles; those of Early Chou usually, but not invariably, do. The division of the two decor belts, neck and foot, is achieved in the former by an unusually realistic bovine head, and in the latter by a thin flange. The decor ground is of spirals of varying size throughout. The bird in the foot belt, of the regular type, displays one odd variation. The long tail is, as usual, cleft in two parts, the lower descending, the upper rising in a long loop. In this instance, however, the shorter part is modified so as to resemble the leg of the bird, giving the impression that the bird has one front and one hind leg. The tuft in the middle, whee the tail goes out from the boky, is a common feature (cf. vessel 50.46.19, Karlgren #33). The winged dragon in the upper belt has a small vertial crest and a big bottle horn with a fingerleaf top that has an eye in the center of the leaf. Patina grey-green in neck and foot belts.

Pan water basin, 12th-11th century BCE

China

Not on View
It is probable that this bird served as an accessory member of some object, possibly a piece of furniture or a large vessel, in as much as the ring in the beak is evidently a handle. Whatever its purpose, the bird is a magical creature, having crest, ears and horns. The broad sweep of its wings, adorned with scales, make it a beautiful one as well. The shoulder line is emphasized by a big comma figure in high, rounded relief. patina green.

Bird, 4th-3rd century BCE

China

Not on View
The cylindrical base of this bird is lower than that of the companion pole top (50.46.91). In other respects the scored flanges, S-shaped horns, and openings in the body, it is very similar. This example has a pellet in the body, however, thus serving as a rattle -- or a bell. Patina grey-green.

Chariot finial with bird, 11th century BCE

China

Not on View
The simple decor, limited to the neck belt, depicts antithetical dragons in low, flat relief. The vessel is heavily encrusted on both outer and inner surfaces. Patina green.

Ritual Food Vessel, 12th-11th century BCE

China

Not on View
Several aspects of this vessel set it apart from others of the Kuei type in the collection. Most immediately arresting is the high, square base on which it rests. Other differences are the spiral ground of the decor, the absence of a neck belt, the division of the vessel into four vertical panels by four flanges in the foot belt by two flanges and the two handles on the belly. Atypical Early Chou feature distinguishes the heavy, thick flanges the breaking through of the T-scores to give the impression of big hooks. The flanges on the body form the center lines of the familiar bodied t'ao-t'ieh. In the foot belt just below, the flanges are the median lines of rudimentary t'oa-t'ieh masks (nose and forehead shield) flanked by trunked dragons of the winged variety which are hee drawn so far apart as to isolate and emphasize the t'ao-t'ieh shield. The t'ao-t'ieh on the base is the same as the one on the belly except for the central line, here a slight ridge instead of a flange. The handle is the most remarkable feature of the vessel. The bow displays the wings of a bird in relief, and the projection at the bottom contains the curved-up bird's tail and its feet descending almost to rest on the tail. The head of the bird body is that of an elephant with big ears in pointed C-shape, raised trunk and protruding tusks. Patina green

Gui food vessel, 11th century BCE

China

Not on View
This richly adorned bell, of pointed oval cross section, is typical of the advanced Huai style. The suspending device consists of one big snake with two bodies, each rising in a bold S-curve. It is flanked by two tigers whose long necks pass under and around the first curve of the snake's bodies, and whose heads are turned so that their noses rest on their backs. Their shoulder line is emphasized by a big, comma-shaped spiral. Their hindquarters have similar comma-shaped loops and their bodies are covered with granulation. The top surface of the bell displays a complicated geometrical scheme of narrow, rope-patterned bands and comma figures. The bell itself is decorated with three bare bands of bosses formed of coiled snakes. Two narrow belts between display dragons in a decor applied by dies. The original drawing for these belts was obviously somewhat wider, inasmuch as parts of the dragon bodies have been cut off. An elaborate t'ao-t'ieh appears in a small, empty space in the center of the forehead. The interlaced and extensively embellished body of the main t'ao-t'ieh is decorated with scale-bands, pointed spirals, and granulation. For a clarification of this involved decor area, see Karlgren, Number 58, figures 62 and 63. Patinagrey-green with blue patches.

Ritual bell, late 6th-early 5th century BCE

China

Not on View
The disposition of this vessel is unusual, for, despite the fact that it has the broad shallow bowl and deep foot of its class, it does not rest on the foot proper. It is supported instead by three small human figures facing outward as they grip the rim of the foot. their bent knees suggest clearly the weight of their burden, as does the strained positon of their heads, held close to the bottom of the bowl and bearing part of its weight. On each of two handles of the bent ear type, an ox reclines calmly, its head turned outward, its legs folded under the body. The division of the vessel into the usual four sections is achieved by two more animals contrasting strongly with the placid oxen. These are dragons that climb vigorously up the sides of the bowl and bite on its rim. The neck belt displays the broad, figured bands of Middle Chou and the foot carries a band of hanging scales of an advanced, almost squared type. Patina sharp green with patches of blue.

Pan water vessel, 9th-8th century BCE

China

Not on View
This vessel, the disposition of its decor on a bare ground, the panels and the system of flanges, free animal's heads, and handles that delimit them, are the same as in the Kuei 50.46.19, Karlgren pl.49. The beaked dragons in neck and foot belts have the unusual feature of an additional plume which hangs down from the curled-up tail. The handles are topped with rams' heads and terminate at the bottom with a C-hook reminiscent of the bird's tail on vessels 49 and 52. Most interesting feature of the vessel is the decor on the bottom surface. It is a coiled dragon, in threadlike relief, with a rolled-up nose and a body adorned with a row of big scales. A foot with claws and fetlock is seen on the inside curve. The outer edge of the body has tufts which in pairs form C-figures. The space behind the tail has been filled out with a simple figure with is really the rudiment of a dragon body. Patina grey-green.

Gui food vessel, 11th-10th century BCE

China

Not on View
The squared body, with its throat developing into a round shape at the rim, is most unusual in this vessel type. The decor results largely from a complicated arrangement of heavy flanges occurring at the corners and in the middle of the foot and central belts. The decor area is thus divided into eight panels. A similar area of eight panels is created in the lower of the two parts of th neck, except that the median line is here achieved by free animals' heads instead of the flanges which appear only at the corners of the neck, where they project as long hooks from the rim. The decor, on a ground of rounded spirals, covers almost the entire vessel. The winged dragons with vertical crests and detached C-shaped horns, which flank the forehead shield of a t'ao-t'ieh in the foot belt, reappear in the lower part of the neck, where they flank the free animal's head in the median line. The central band displays a t'ao-t'ieh drawn in bold, sweeping curves which cannot, as is usual, be broken up into two antithetical dragons. The only relic of the dragon is a small vertical line at the side of each horn above the ear. The upper part of the neck displays broad rising blades, the flanges serving as their median line. The content of the upper blade is seen, from above, to be a violently stylized dragon, the curved beak, crest, and leaf-shaped horn clearly visible, the body a maze of curving lines. Patina grey-green.

Zun wine vessel, 10th century BCE

China

Not on View
This small bell, of pointed oval cross section and a straight bottom line, has a relatively simple suspending device. It is formed of two confronted tigers facing backward and joined, head-to-head, by a plain narrow band through which a strap could be passed. The bodies of the tigers, and of the coiled snakes on the bosses, are filled with granulation. The remaining decor areas, on body and top, are filled with interlaced snakes, their bodies formed by four parallel relief threads. Warlike studs occur at the junction of the snakes' bodies. Patinagreen-blue.

Bo bell, 6th- 5th century BCE

China

Not on View
This cap is unusual in that it still has the linch pins. The closed end of the cap, set off from the pin end by a triple band in rounded relief, is decorated with a broad wavy band enclosing, in the inner loop, a figure reminiscent of a cicada. In the outer loop of the wave is a scale-like motif. The top of the linch-pin is formed of an animal's head with spiral horns curving inward. They are executed in heavy, thread-like relief. The ears are formed of a large spiral and the snout is blunt and heavy. Patina grey-green.

Wheel-axle Cap, one of a pair, 570-476 BCE

China

Not on View
This is one of the important group of hunting-scene Hu flasks which can with certainty be dated pre-Han, since many of them have decor elements that belong to the Huai style and did not survive into Han time. The Hu has the ordinary shape of this class and two small handles witha movable ring suspended from the mouth of a small t'ao-t'eih mask. (One of the movable handles is missing.) The foot has a narrow belt with a band of volutes and triangles, the volutes here turned into birds' heads. On the vessel proper there are six narrow bands in low relief with swastika-like figures which are merely a corruption of the well-known whorl circle. The decor of the five principal belts has been impressed by dies, sometimes with curious results. The two lower belts depict scenes in which beasts of the bovine type are pursued by men in feathered (?) headdresses who attack with swords and arrows. In the third belt, archers with one knee bent and bodies thrust violently backward shoot at birds. The shoulder belt, disposed in one panel for every two in the lower belts, depicts a vivid hunting scene. A man attacks with his sword a tiger that has an arrow through its shoulder. To the left is a two-wheeled carriage drawn by four horses. As the driver rushes forward his companion aims at a bird above and to the rear. The neck belt is filled with birds which swallow snakes. For a detailed description of the decor, see Karlgren Number 53 (50.46.9)/ Patina Green. The Hunting-scene hu vessels mark a revolutionary departure in the Chinese bronze art. In earlier vessels there were no real scenes, only figures placed with strict regard for symmetry. Here, for the first time, are freely disposed scenes of action. The shoulder panel is especially remarkable in this respect the ancient rule of symmetical arrangement is completely abandoned, and the artist has depicted a wide-ranging scene of vivid action. That this emancipation was due to foreign influence, the Northern Nomad art style ('Ordos'), seems clear. For comment on this point, see B

Hu wine vessel, 5th century BCE

China

Not on View
Wine Can, so-called 'YOU', inscribed. The decor is limited to the neck and corresponding lid belts, and to the handle bow. The first is divided into four parts by the rings of the handle and two free animals' heads. The lid with a ring-shaped knob, is divided into two parts by toothlike projections corresponding to the handle-rings of the body. The two belts are filled with antithetical deer, reminiscent of the Northern Nomad animal style, in rounded relief on a bare ground. The handle carries three t'ao-t'ieh like figures in narrow thread relief between three lozenges in high, angular relief. The handle terminates in rams heads. Patina silvery-greeen wih patches of red. This vessel is one of two that belonged to the Imperial Colllection. The inscription is the same on both the known vessels. See Karlgren, number 15 (50.46.94a,b) for comment.

'You' wine vessel, 11th century BCE

China

Not on View
This vessel has the beautiful proportions and soft profile typical of the group of Hu once inlaid with turquoise, other semi-precious stones, or perhaps niello. The animals which inspired the decor have been so corrupted and dissolved that the whole surface is a maze of lines, hooks, and spirals. Remnants of interlaced dragons are still discernible in the narrower bands, and occasionally, in the highly geometricized decor, a definite shape, such as the dragons flanking the central medallion, may be isolated. These medallion-like figures appear in the median line, with the decor pattern symmetrically arranged on each side. The middle one of the figures- best seen in the neck belt- is a t'ao-t'ieh mask with forehead shield, horns, and nostrils as seen in many appliques. The T'ao-t'ieh on the handle ring displays an interesting revival of a Yin-time motif a figure between the eyes showing one round knob in the center surrounded by six other knobs. Patina silvery green.

Fanghu wine vessel, 5th-4th century BCE

China

Not on View
The chequer motif achieved by plain bands (here with raised borders), each chequer filled with the comma pattern (cf. Karlgren Number 55, 50.46.10), is common on these flat Hu. The rising blades on the neck are bare. The t'ao-t'ieh mask on the loose ring handles has the volute with triangle as its principal decor feature (on the ring in inlay); on the cheek line there is a granulation pattern. Patina greenish-grey. With copper inlay; Huai style.

Bianhu wine vessel, 5th century BCE

China

Not on View
Wine Can, HU (YU)?, inscribed. This vessel type, tall with round cross section, is customarily called 'YU' if it has a handle, 'HU' if it has not. The decor is limited and discreet. The foot belt carries an eyed band with diagonals. The belts on neck and lid, bordered by circle bands, display the animal triple band a highly dissolved bodied t'ao-t'ieh with a row of quills on its back. The flange marking the center line of the face has been reduced to a narrow ridge.The dome-shaped lid has a ring knob and no collar. The handle, adorned with rams' heads at the ends, displays the same kind of cramped t'ao-t'ieh as that on the 'Yu' 50.46.94 - Karlgren plate 21. Patina grey-green.

You wine vessel, 11th century BCE

China

Not on View
Stout Wine Beaker,'Tsun', inscribed. A high degree of sophistication is evident in the decor of this broad beaker. In the foot and principal body belts it is disposed in six panels formed by six flanges with straight and L-shaped scores. The foot belt displays a dragonized t'ao-t'ieh with S-shaped horns, and a tail rising in an S-curve. The same decor occurs in the main body belt, where the vertical dragons under the raised tail are clearly visible. The narrow belt above has only three flanges, which form the central lines of dragonized, winged t'ao-t'ieh. The spaces occupied below by additional flanges are filled by t'ao-t'ieh in flat relief. All of these dragonized t'ao-t'ieh have T-shaped horns. The six panels on the shoulder, delimited alternately by flanges and big, plastically rendered rams heads, carry dragon figures with protruding eyes executed in exaggerated loops. In the lower belt of the neck, which has no flanges, pairs of consecutive trunked dragons facing to the right confronting pairs facing to the left. They have bottle horns and quills on their backs. Above, in the slender, rising blades, the decor filling consists of antithetical dragons with standing C-shaped horns, their trunk-like noses meeting in the median line, their narrow, band-like bodies joining at the tip of the blade and its filling is probably meant to suggest an eyed cicada, which it does in fact vaguely suggest. Patina green with patches of blue. The inscription depicts a wine vessel.

Zun wine vessel, late 12th-11th century BCE

China

Not on View
This ting represents the Huai style at its extreme point in the matter of the vessel shape. The tradition that in this style the body of the Ting is big and bulky in proportion to the extremely short, thin legs, is here carried to the ultimate degree. The high lid, its ring-shaped top capable of serving as a foot if the lid is inverted, is fully spherical in shape. The legs are very small and thin and display a t'ao-t'ieh with spiral horns on their upper parts. (The t'ao-t'ieh, all but extinct during Middle Chou, reappeared in the Huai Style Period). Dissolved dragon rigid ring handles are adorned with a row of cowries bordered by rope-patterned bands. On the top of the lid, a loosely twined cord pattern encloses a quartefoil with its central disk filled with granulation. Patina blue-green.

Vessel with Cover, 5th-4th century BCE

China

Not on View
'Kia', with uprights. A strongly S-profiled wall, its inward curvature placed low, creates a high, flaring collar decorated with a band of dragonized t'ao-t'ieh. Above is a row of rising blades filled with stylized cicadas. On the body, three deeply scored flanges form the central ridges of three dissolved t'ao-t'ieh on a spiral ground. The handle is surmounted by an animal's head with well defined feratures. The upper part, forming the neck of the animal, is covered with rows of scales; the lower part, starting from the mouth, is decorated with incised compound spirals in front and with lozenges in low relief on the sides. Directly under the handle, two small dragons with turned heads stand opposite each other. Patina blue-green.

Jia wine vessel, 13th-12th century BCE

China

Not on View
This example, on a high, cylindrical base, is closely related to 50.46.24. Here, however the scored flanges extend to the back of the head and the front of the neck instead of being confined to the back. The S-shaped horns are reminiscent of those seen on many t'ao-t'ieh, e.g. Karlgren Number 31 (50.46.104). Patina grey-green.

Chariot Finial with Bird, late 12th-11th century BCE

China

Not on View
round, gilt, with legendary figures and fantastic animals in relief. with images of the Taoist immortals Tung Wang Fu and Hsi Wang Mu

Mirror, 2nd century

China

Not on View
gilt bronze with crystal and glass inlay; three central glass circles; masks on either end, hook attached to mouth of one; underside silver inlay, ungilded, circular button at underside

Belt Hook, 4th-3rd century BCE

China

Not on View
Ding ritual food vessel (Liyu style) with separate lid

Ding food vessel, 6th-5th century BCE

China

Not on View
Mirror, round, black and green patina.

Mirror, 1st-2nd century

China

Not on View
The body of the vessel displays a band of hanging blades with crisply delineated cicadas in a ground of squared spirals. In the neck belt, piars of consecutive beaked dragons are separated from pairs of antithetical beaked dragons by rudimentary flanges. Again the background is squared spirals. Patinagreen.

Ding food vessel, 12th century BCE

China

Not on View
one of a pair of axle caps includes hook and pin; interlocking Chih dragon motif on caps, hook with bird head, and tiger mask on the pin

Pair of Axle-Caps with Lynch Pins, 5th-4th century BCE

China

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Tsun (wine vessel) bronze, in the form of a goose. Inlaid with turquoise, malachite(?). Green patina. Very rare shape.

Goose-shaped zun (Ritual Wine Vessel), 4th century BCE

China

Not on View
belt buckle t'ao t'ieh mask at one end, serpentine dragon at other; bronze with gilt Tai-Kou

Buckle, 5th-4th century BCE

China

Not on View
saucer with attached central stemmed container, decorated with dragons on foot; openwork lid with openings behind mountains with figures and animals

Boshanlu hill censer, 1st-2nd century

China

Not on View
tall thin vessel with a flaring top; round base with four blade shape designs up the sides

Gu wine vessel, 13th-12th century BCE

China

Not on View
Animal head at top; sides carved with scrolling organic designs; front has five inlaid decorated jade panels with organic designs and four jade bars between, with two plain jade panels at bottom

Belt hook, 3rd century BCE

China

Not on View
thinly cast with a narrow spout and pointed lip above an oblong body cast with three medial lines, a single loop handle; all standing on tall blade-form legs

Jue wine vessel, 16th-15th century BCE

China

Not on View
Mirror with figure and dragons.

Mirror, 1st-2nd century

China

Not on View
mirror, round, with pictorial decoration in relief, Yeuh type

Mirror, 1st-2nd century

China

Not on View
Wine can, so-called 'Yu', inscribed. A rich and varied decor is disposed in seven horizontal belts, of which five the foot belt, the two lower body belts, and the two on the domed lid, are divided into four panels by heavy, scored flanges with tooth-like projections. In the neck belt, flanges occur only on the long sides of the oval, where they form central ridges of the rudimentary t'ao-t'ieh. On the other sides the flanges are ousted by two handle attachments. The foot, the lower body, and the rim belts antithetical birds of three different types on a ground of squared spirals. The neck belt of the body and the lower belt on the dome of the lid have antithetical dragons of two kinds. Vertical ribs, typical of the B style appear on the middle belt of the body and the top belt of the lid. The knob is conical with incised cicadas all around. The bow handle, terminated by animals' heads with bottle horns, displays long gaping dragons. Patina grey-green patches of sharp green.

You wine vessel, 12th-11th century BCE

China

Not on View
The term Tou for this type of vessel is confirmed by inscriptions. The slightly flattened sphere formed by body and lid appears huge and bulky in comparison with the short, footed stem. When inverted on its shallow disk the lid serves as a separate bowl. This top is adorned with a whorl circle surrounded by squared spirals. The surrounding border is filled with interlaced snakes on a granulation ground. On the lid proper there are three decor belts, separated by bare bands, filled with a minute comma-pattern. The body of the vessel has a similar belt of commas set off by a bare band at the rim and by a narrow rope-patterned band in relief below. There follows a very narrow band of comma pattern above a band of heart-shaped hanging blades filled with commas. the foot, like the disk on the lid, has a belt with interlaced snakes on a granulation ground. The ring-shaped handles have pointed spirals and a rope-patterned band. Patina Grey-green with patches of blue.

Pair of dou (ritual food vessels), 5th century BCE

China

Not on View
The term Tou for this type of vessel is confirmed by inscriptions. The slightly flattened sphere formed by body and lid appears huge and bulky in comparison with the short, footed stem. When inverted on its shallow disk the lid serves as a separate bowl. This top is adorned with a whorl circle surrounded by squared spirals. The surrounding border is filled with interlaced snakes on a granulation ground. On the lid proper there are three decor belts, separated by bare bands, filled with a minute comma-pattern. The body of the vessel has a similar belt of commas set off by a bare band at the rim and by a narrow rope-patterned band in relief below. There follows a very narrow band of comma pattern above a band of heart-shaped hanging blades filled with commas. the foot, like the disk on the lid, has a belt with interlaced snakes on a granulation ground. The ring-shaped handles have pointed spirals and a rope-patterned band. Patina Grey-green with patches of blue.

Dou food vessel, one of a pair, 400 BCE

China

Not on View
These birds having crests, ears, and horns, may be classified as magical animals. The bodies are adorned with incised spirals, the shoulder line being emphasized by a large comma figure in round relief. the wings, spread flat, are bordered with a striated band. In their claws the birds clutch a beast (snake?) with two bodies which curve out from the birds' claws and end in a flourish with double curves at the base of the birds' breasts. The eyeballs have the form of raised knobs with hollow centers. It is probable that these birds served as accessory members to some object, possibly a vase, inasmuch as the beaks curve into rings to permit passage of a handle. Patina grayed-green with areas of darker green.

Bird, one of a pair, 7th-6th century BCE

China

Not on View
The name Su for this type of vessel is confirmed by inscriptions, the difference between a Su and a Kuei being that the former is oblong, the latter round. The lid of this Su, if inverted, will be a vessel in itself. The workmanship, unusually fine for the period, exhibits some of the most typical features of the Middle Chou Style. The foot belt presents the so-called 'wavy line,' here executed in open work; the belly has the 'grooves' (gadrooned bands); and the neck and lid belts display the 'scale band' in flat relief. In the last two areas a small flange appears in the center of the long side, thus following the Yin tradition of dividing a cessel into four panels by handles and flanges - or free animals' heads. the Yin time but ubiquitous in Chou. Inside the ring on the lid is a bottom decor in flat, double-banded relief a beg S-shaped dragon's body ending in a dragon's head at each end. To be noted, in addition to the long tongue, the ear, and the crooked horn, are the eyes in high relief just below the tufts midway on the body. Patina green with patches of blue.

Xu food vessel, early 9th century BCE

China

Not on View
These birds having crests, ears, and horns, may be classified as magical animals. The bodies are adorned with incised spirals, the shoulder line being emphasized by a large comma figure in round relief. the wings, spread flat, are bordered with a striated band. In their claws the birds clutch a beast (snake?) with two bodies which curve out from the birds' claws and end in a flourish with double curves at the base of the birds' breasts. The eyeballs have the form of raised knobs with hollow centers. It is probable that these birds served as accessory members to some object, possibly a vase, inasmuch as the beaks curve into rings to permit passage of a handle. Patina grayed-green with areas of darker green.

Bird, one of a pair, 7th-6th century BCE

China

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Between the slanting eyes, framed by striated bands, is a ridge with scales that terminates in a pointed forehead. The scales are repeated on the inward curving horns, on the ear-like projections, and on one tusk (the second tusk is missing). The eyeballs are in the form of raised knobs with hollow centers. Knobs of the same type recur elsewhere on the mask on the inner point of the horns and again toward the middle; at the base of the pointed forehead; on the ears and the remaining tusk. The nose forms the loop holding the ring handle. A short lug projects from the base of the mask behind the loop that holds the ring. Patina grey-green.

Mask with Ring Handle, one of a pair, 5th-4th century BCE

China

Not on View
Between the slanting eyes, framed by striated bands, is a ridge with scales that terminates in a pointed forehead. The scales are repeated on the inward curving horns, on the ear-like projections, and on one tusk (the second tusk is missing). The eyeballs are in the form of raised knobs with hollow centers. Knobs of the same type recur elsewhere on the mask on the inner point of the horns and again toward the middle; at the base of the pointed forehead; on the ears and the remaining tusk. The nose forms the loop holding the ring handle. A short lug projects from the base of the mask behind the loop that holds the ring. Patina grey-green.

Mask with Ring Handle, one of a pair, 5th-4th century BCE

China

Not on View
This cap is unusual in that it still has the linch pins. The closed end of the cap, set off from the pin end by a triple band in rounded relief, is decorated with a broad wavy band enclosing, in the inner loop, a figure reminiscent of a cicada. In the outer loop of the wave is a scale-like motif. The top of the linch-pin is formed of an animal's head with spiral horns curving inward. They are executed in heavy, thread-like relief. The ears are formed of a large spiral and the snout is blunt and heavy. Patina grey-green

Wheel-axle Cap, one of a pair, 770-476 BCE

China

Not on View
These beasts, contorted for the probable purpose of serving as vessel supports, are similar, with one exception, to the example without a tail (50.46.70). The decor consists of spirals on legs, haunches, and tail; bands of stripes in an S-shaped pattern extending from shoulders to tail; a band of cowries around the neck, and a large comma shape in high, rounded relief on the shoulders. On these examples, however, a small granulated band appears at the base of the nose.

Tiger, one of a pair, Late 6th or early 5th century BCE

China

Not on View
The sculpture quality of these dishing beasts is admirably conveyed by their carriage, the proud pose of their heads, and the almost arrogant suppleness of their bodies. The forceful comma-shapes of the tails and their jaunty tufts, as well as the double-rope pattern on the mustachios, give ample proof that, in spite of the scale that, in these creatures must be dated later than Middle Zhou. Patina grey-green

Winged Dragon, 5th-4th century BCE

China

Not on View
tall thin vessel with a flaring top; round base with four blade shape designs up the sides

Gu wine vessel, 13th-12th century BCE

China

Not on View
T'ao Tieh mask, with pendant ring; large figure decoration on mask partly obliterated by heavy brown and green encrustiation; bronze cracked to left of right eyebrow; gilt bronze.

Taotie Mask with Pendant Ring, 700 BCE

China

Not on View
one of a pair of axle-caps includes hook and pin; interlocking Chih dragon motif on caps, hook with bird head, and tiger mask on the pin

Axle-Cap, one of a pair, 5th-4th century BCE

China

Not on View
Three tapered legs, helmet shaped body, elephant head grips, chased dragon band decoration

Jue libation vessel, 8th century BCE

China

Not on View
one of a pair of bridle pieces

Bridle Piece, one of a pair, 600-220 BCE

China

Not on View
Mirror, tound, with zig-zag lozenges on ground of comma pattern. Shou-chou type.

Mirror, 4th-3rd century BCE

China

Not on View
one of a pair of bridle pieces

Bridle Piece, one of a pair, 600-220 BCE

China

Not on View
Mirror, round, with design of dragons and compound lozenges. Shou-chou type.

Mirror, 4th-3rd century BCE

China

Not on View
Mirror, round, with dragons on interlocking 'T' ground. Lo-yang type

Mirror, 4th-3rd century BCE

China

Not on View
cylindrical shaped, with 4 segments separated by raised rings; stylized, heavily abstracted bird designs with scrolls, circles and lines

Chariot Fitting, 3rd-2nd century BCE

China

Not on View
gilt bronze with three rectangular shaped blue glass inlay across front of main body; dragon head hook at end, three bands at opposite end; has own mount

Belt Hook, 2nd century BCE

China

Not on View
long handle segmented to imitate bamboo sprig; loose ring at top; bowl has small mask at handle and openwork design of hooked scroll motif

Openwork Spoon, 5th-4th century BCE

China

Not on View
Three tapered legs, helmet shaped body, elephant head grips, chased dragon band decoration

Jue libation vessel, 206 BCE - 221 CE

China

Not on View
gold and turquoise inlaid in a triangle and circle pattern

Belt Hook, 206 BCE- 220 CE

China

Not on View
Mirror with figures.

Mirror, 220-586

China

Not on View
stand

Stand, 1st-2nd century

China

Not on View
green patina overall; rounded body with inward-flaring shoulder and outward-flaring flat mouth; three feet; six decorative brackets; two "handles"; elaborate decorations overall of geometric forms

Shengding food vessel, 6th century BCE

China

Not on View
Wide foot with a very long stem, thinner in the center; round bowl with 2 vertically placed attached ring handles; round lid with 3 protruding prongs on top; incised decorations overall

Dou food vessel, 4th century BCE

China

Not on View
standing male figure with outstretched arms; one hand grasping opposite wrist; green patina; mounted on stand

Standing figure, 5th-4th century BCE

China

Not on View
bulb shaped with ring handles; handles held on by hardware with animal-like "face"; incised pattern covers entire vessel; vessle is green with areas of white showing through the pattern

Hu wine vessel, 5th-4th century BCE

China

Not on View
squat vessel with tall foot; rounded body with outward-flaring rim; pair of handles with animal heads and tab-like bottom extensions; vertical incised ribs on body; top band has a pair of dragons each with two serpentine bodies; bottom band has stylized animals; green patina

Gui (ritual food vessel), 11th-10th century BCE

China

Not on View
cast in shallow relief with a pair of stylized cicadas and leiwen filling a panel across the top of the crescent-shaped central bridge flanked by two slender faceted arms, each in a high arc and tapering down to a pierced spherical terminal enclosing a loose ball (bells), light and dark green patination

Archaic bow-shaped fitting, 12th-11th century BCE

China

Not on View
He, inscribed. Vessels of the He class vary according to the shape of the belly, which may be that of a Li, a Li-ting, or a Ting. This unique specimen has the hemispherical shape of a Ting. The handle, surmounted by an animal's head; the chain and its rings; the small handle on the lid decorated with dragon heads; the spout and the legs are very simple. The blade decor of the spout and legs, and the dragon motif in the neck and lid belts -- so dissolved as to leave only the eyes and interlocked double spirals as remnants of the bodies -- are in no way uncommon. In view of their off-hand treatment, the decor of the belly is doubly striking. It consists of rows of scales in flat,double-band relief, each scale being filled with a dissolved cicada motif in thread relief. This scale decor is a harbinger of the scale-band of the Middle Chou style. Therefore this vessel, with its cylindrical legs of the earlier periods, is best dated in the latter part of the early Chou, on the border of Middle Chou, i.e., circa B.C.900. Patina gray and blue-green

He wine vessel, 11th-10th century BCE

China

Not on View
The tang is formed of the crested bird's head inlaid with turquoise. The socket, into which a jade blade has been fitted, is also inlaid with turquoise. A circular depression in the middle section of the tang suggests that it may also have once had inlay. Pieces of turquoise are missing in both tang and socket. The jade blade is dark, grayed-green mottled with cream and red toward the point on one side. The reverse is mottled with cream and red the length of the blade. Patina green

Ceremonial ge dagger-axe, 1300-1046 BCE

China

Not on View
The tang is formed of a crested bird's head inlaid with turquoise. The socket, also inlaid with turquoise, has a mask decor from which pieces of turquoise are missing. The socket is fitted with a tawny-white jade blade mottled with warm brown and flecks of brilliant green. The edges of the pointed blade are finished with bevels that narrow toward the point. A central ridge run from socket to point. A closed crack, dark brown at the lower end, runs diagonally from the socket to the mid-section of the pointed end. Patina green

Dagger-axe (ge), 1600-1046 BCE

China

Not on View
The decor is disposed in the three areas usual in vessels of this class the foot, bulb, and neck. The foot belt, divided into four panels by deeply scored flanges, displays a mask t'ao-tieh with a C-shaped mouthline, hooked forehead shield, small eyebrows, and S-shaped norns. Above is a narrow band with consecutive trunked dragons. The decor ground is of squared spirals throughout. The bulb, also divided into four panels, displays a t'ao-tieh bodied to the extent that some simple lines of a vertical body still remain above the leg. The central line of the face, with no forehead shield, is formed by the flange. The lower zone of the high throat is filled with consecutive snakes, their heads turned EN FACE. Above are slender rising blades, the major part of each filled with a t'ao-t'ieh to be seen from above. Streaked eyebrows appear over buldging eyes, and over these, again, long-drawn-out C-shaped figures forming the horns. Below the eyes are two C-shaped figures, modifications of mouthlines. At the end of the blade, separated from the t'ao-t'ieh by a narrow, empty band, is a V-figure- a corruption of a cicada drawing. Patina grey-green and blue-green with patches of red. Except for a cross-shaped perforation between the foot and the area above, the beaker is in almost every detail exactly similar to the one with a Yin inscription published in Huang, TSUN KU CHAI.

Gu wine vessel, 12th-11th century BCE

China

Not on View
For this type of vessel the term Lei is confirmed by inscriptions. The Lei represents a vessel class in which a typical pottery shape has been translated into bronze. The decor, on a ground of spirals squared except for a single row of rounded ones, occupies four areas. In the lower part of the body is a band of large hanging blades, their borders scored, like flanges, with straight and T-shaped scores. Each contains two antithetical figures in flat, band relief. These are actually extreme corruptions of beaked dragons with bodies coalescing at the point of the blade. For this origin, see Karlgren Number 26, Plate 39 (50.46.101). Birds with cleft crests and heart-shaped horns alternate with whorl circles in the neck and lid belts. On the shoulder belt between are strongly stylized dragons with the same head serving two differently shaped dragon bodies a winged dragon on the one side, a dragon with curled-up tail and an extra plume on the tail end on the other. The animals' heads on the top of the ring handles are the same as the one seen en face on the lower part of the body. Patina silver green.

'Lei' wine vessel, 1300-1201 BCE

China

Not on View
The division into four panels is achieved by the hancles only in two places and in the remaining two places by small flanges in the foot belt, a slight ridge in the central belt, and free animals' heads in the neck belt. The flange forms the center of a rudimentary t'ao-t'ieh mask, the ridge the center of a well-contained bodied t'ao-t'ieh with the usual elements. This creature, done with a light touch, is surely one of the most urbane of its kind in the long history of Chinese bronzes. The winged dragons in the foot belt and the birds in the neck belt are, like the t'ao-t'ieh, in thr rounded relief on a bare ground. The handle, with a ramlike animal's head at the top, is adorned with birds' wings in flat band relief on the bow, thus giving the ram's head a bird's body. The bird's long tail descends vertically in the same relief, the end turned up. The bird's leg and foot come down in front, almost to the point of resting on the curled-up tail. This arangement, seen in plastic form on the Ting with supporting animals, Karlgren number 4 (50.46.105), survives in other Kuei vessels in the form of a C-shaped hook below the bow handle. Patina pale green.

Gui food vessel, 11th century BCE

China

Not on View
Bronze handle with inlays; no surface decor on the blade; T'ao t'ieh design on the handle. Grey-ivory jade with variation of brown and blue clouds; bronze patinated handle; hollowed handle, with green crystal-like inlay.

Ceremonial mao spear head, 1600-1046 BCE

China

Not on View
The form of this vessel is the usual broad type with oval section, but the exaggeratedly high collar of the lid, topped by a spherical knob, adds to the impression of height. The decor, disposed in three belts foot, neck, and lid, displays dragons with S-shaped bodies, turned heads, and large S-shaped crests (or horns?). The neck belt is divided in two panels on the long side by a free animal's head, the foot and rim belts by very shallow lines in low relief representing flanges. The handle ends in animals' heads with bottle horns. For a discussion of this type of horn see Karlgren, number 17 (50.46.18ab). Patina green and blue-green.

You wine vessel, 10th-9th century BCE

China

Not on View
This weapon has a tube, oval in cross section, with a hole into which the shaft was inserted. On the opposite side a short lug protrudes from the tube. Two decorative head-turning dragons, with S-shaped horns and scales on their bodies, extend from the tube on one side and the lug on the other to the points of the crescent-shaped blade. Apart from the t'ao-t'ieh on the tang, and the row of blades with rudimentary cicada filling near the edge of the axe, the decor is rather involved. This decor can best be understood through the aid of a parallel, an axe formerly in the Raphael collection, reproduced in Karlgren #85, figure 74. In this example the composition on the blade can be seen quite clearly. At the bottom there is a coiled snake, the head seen en face. Above is a figure that might be a demon. Nostril and mouth line have coalesced in a large, recumbent C, and from the head three large curling plumes sweep up onto the shaft tube. The body of the creature, starting just behind the end of the mouth line, goes down in an S-bend and ends in two sharp, pointed claws. A comparison with the Pillsbury axe reveals that the same motif is repeated but is less carefully worked out. The C-line of nose and mouth below the eye has much less distinct. Patina green.

Axe with tubular socket, 11th-10th century BCE

China

Not on View
This weapon displays the assymetrically placed tang and the strongly crested head of a bird that was a ubiquitous motif in the bronze art of Yin time. The bird's head, and the socket fitted with a blade of jade, are inlaid with turquoise. The meaning of the two holes in the blade is obscure. Patina green.

Dagger-axe (ge), 1600-1100 BCE

China

Not on View
The tang displays a dragon figure, originally inlaid, and a dent in its contour, the origin and meaning of which are obscure. This type of Kuo is quite common, several specimens having come from An-yang. One of the lugs has been broken off this example. Patina green.

Dagger-axe (ge), 12th-11th century BCE

China

Not on View
Tsue (Chueh), inscribed. This 'Wine cup (in bird shape)' is an unusually fine example of its type. The ample well-proportioned bowl of this vessel provides and admirable balance for the slender, spreading legs. In the principal decor belt is a strongly dissolved t'ao-t'ieh, its horns, shield and c-shaped mouth-line so filled with spirals that they almost coalesce with the background spirals.The neck bears a band of rising blades, the one under the spout elongated. An animal's head of the bovine type decorates the top of the handle, and whorl circles appear on the tops of the uprights. Patina blue -green. The inscription probably depicts a scene of human sacrifice.

Jue wine vessel, 12th–11th century BCE

China

Not on View
This weapon displays the assymetrically placed tang and the strongly beaked, crested head of a bird that was a ubiquitous motif in the bronze art of Yin-time. The details of the bird's head are in rather heavy thread relief. This piece is similar to Karlgren Number 81, plate 99, but is of bronze throughout. Patina green

Ceremonial dagger, 12th-11th century BCE

China

Not on View
Wine Cup 'CHI', inscribed. The decor on a ground of spirals is one of restrained exuberance, dragonized t'ao-t'ieh (winged type) appear in the foot and neck belts, which are interrupted by shallow, flat flanges only on the long sides. The bodied t'ao-t'ieh on the belly displays tiny hooks on the forehead shield, and scores on the horns similar to those usually found on flanges. Two strongly stylized, head-turning dragons appear behind the feet of the t'ao-t'ieh. Rising blades, with spirals suggesting dissolved cicadas, adorn the neck of the vessel. The lid has two t'ao-t'ieh masks on a ground of squared spirals. Patina grey-green and blue-green. The meaning ofthe inscription, showing two arrows on a stand, is unknown.

Zhi wine vessel, 13th-12th century BCE

China

Not on View
The blade has bevels broad at the base of the socket and narrowing as they approach the point. A broad raised mid-rib runs from a mask on the socket to the point of the blade. A decor of diapers, painted in double black lines, covers the blade. At each point of intersection there is a short, transversal line thick in the middle and thinning out at the ends. The butt cap for this lance is in the form of a slightly tapering tube ending in three sharp points. The cylindrical grip is encircled by a raised ring flanked by two narrow bands in lower relief. Two small holes beneath the ring served for the rivet that transfixed the lance head to the haft. The tube has a hole with cracks radiating from it, toward the pointed end. Patinasoft pale green (lance head), sage green (butt cap).

Lance head and haft butt cap, 4th century BCE

China

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The yuan is slender with narrow bevels on the cutting edge. It is decorated with an indeterminate design in niello and is further adorned in the upper part by a pierced pattern displaying a circle from from which two pierced lines issue, one toward the point, the other toward the nei. Mr. Karlbeck sees in this motif a resembles to a chu. The rounded end of the nei also displays a circle in openwork. Along the narrow flanges of the hu are three U-shaped holes. These served to bind the haft to the Kuo with thongs. Patinasoft greyed-green.

Ge (Dagger-Axe), 400-301 BCE

China

Not on View
The tang and part of the blade are executed in open work on this Kuo with socket. The composition is involved, with a tiger, which bites on a snake, standing on the neck and back of a bird that faces out from the blade. the body of the tiger is adorned along the back with a dragon figure in low relief. The larger surfaces are covered with granulation. Patina grey-green.

Dagger-axe (ge), 6th-5th century BCE

China

Not on View
The bevels of the cutting edge are fairly wide and the central ridge is well pronounced. The surface of the socket forms a polygon, of which three sides- on front and reverse of the socket- continue as sharply pointed angles to the base of the socket. Above, on each side, is a mask turned upside down. Patina soft grey-green

Lance head, 4th century BCE

China

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The curling dragon and bird-dragon decor of this weapon is inlaid with silver. The slits in the blade served as passages for the thong that bound the haft to the kuo. Patina green Bronze with gold inlay.

Dagger-Axe (ge), 4th-3rd century BCE

China

Not on View
Wine can, so-called 'Yu', inscribed. This vessel, broad and oval in section, has a bow-shaped handle attached to rings at the ends of the oval. These rings, together with free animal's heads on the long side of the oval, serve to divide the neck belt into four panels. On the lid and foot, decor belts are divided into four panels by simple flanges. The body and the cupola of the lid, interrupted only by two unsegmented flanges at the ends of the oval, constitute two large fields for the principle decor, executed in rather high, rounded relief on a bare ground, unusual in this vessel class. Two consecutive winged dragons appear in each panel of the narrow belts, those in one panel antithetically placed to those in the next. The body of the vessel displays a bodied t'ao-t'ieh, its vertically rising body and leg detached from the forcefully modeled head. The t'ao-t'ieh of the lid faces the same way as that on the body. The animal head at the end of the handle is a remarkable feature of this vessel. In general, it resembles the ordinary t'ao-t'ieh, but the horns are highly eccentric. Basically the well-known 'bottle horns', they are flattened at the top into a five-fingered leaf centered by a big eye in the same high, rounded relief as that in the animals' face. Patina green with patches of brown.

You wine vessel, 11th-10th century BCE

China

Not on View
The decor of the upper part of this bipartite boiler is restricted to a neck belt with low, narrow flanges of which every second becomes the central ridge in the face of a dragonized t'ao-t'ieh,the halves formed by winged dragons.The bulbs of the Li-ting forming the lower half of the vessel are adorned with forceful t'ao-t'ieh heads of a fairly realistic bovine type, with eyebrows, ears, scaly horns .

Yan steamer, 11th century BCE

China

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tripod vessel with handle and elongated spout; decorative band around middle

Jue libation vessel, 11th century BCE

China

Not on View
'fang-yi', so-called, inscribed. The term 'fang-yi' meaning 'square vessel' is a make-shift and does not mean that this type of vessel can be identified with any particular class of which the use is revealed in the classics. The vessel, of rectangular cross section, is divided into eight vertical panels by thick flanges with straight and T-shaped scores. On the narrow sides, the central flange terminates with the t'ao-t'ieh mask of which it forms the median line, thus stopping short of the top ridge of the lid. The three belts on the body are set off by shallow, narrow flutes which do not interrupt the flanges. The foot belt corresponds to a real foot, the bottom of the vessel coinciding with the lower flute. The four openings in the sides were possibly vents for fumes of burning charcoal. The whole vessel is densely covered with decor on a ground of squared spirals which do not, oddly enough, balance in the two halves of the surface. In the foot are antithetical elephants adorned with whorl circles. On the principal surface the t'ao-t'ieh has the common C-shaped mouth line, forehead shield with rounded top, and C-horns with borders scored like flanges. On the broad sides the t'ao-t'ieh is flanked by vertical dragons in relief so low and bands so narrow that they are almost lost in the background. In the neck band are trunked dragons with heart-shaped horns and rows of scales on the body. Along their backs is a flange-like border with straight and T-shaped scores. The dragons on the broad side have a lower jaw turning outward; those on the narrow side have jaws turning inward. The lid decor repeats the t'ao-t'ieh of the body, but inverted, to be seen from above. The knob is undecorated. Inside the lid is a cicada. Patina gray-green

Fangyi wine vessel, early 12th century BCE

China

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The low-relief decor is confined to the belly of this flask. In the lower, main belt, on a ground of squared spirals, it displays a geometrical pattern reminiscent of the compound lozenge and interlocked 'T' motifs. It also recalls the decor of the white ceramic wares of Anyang. The band of highly stylized dragons above presents another point of contact with Anyang ceramics. The top belt on the body carries a band of 'S' shaped spirals bordered by circle bands.The lid and its knob are almost conical. Both are adorned with whorl circles; in relief on the lid, on the knob in incised lines. On the throat, just below the lid, are two small ears, perhaps for passing a cord. Patina grey-green.

Hu wine vessel, 13th-12th century BCE

China

Not on View
The decor displays outstanding elements of the Middle Chou repertoire on a vessel reminiscent in profile of an earlier Hu (50.46.26, Karlgren number 19). An eyed band with diagonals appears on the foot and on the belly is a system of scale bands in flat relief, imitating straps around the flask. Big lozenges in high, peaked relief occur at the junction of these bands. An identical scale band decorates the neck, which has, in its narrowest part, two small handles. These, with two free animals' heads, achieve a division into four sections. The handles are adorned with t'ao-t'ieh heads (rare int he Middle Chou style and usually found on such accesory parts as handles or legs). The scale band is repeated for the third time on the lid a functional member in that the ring-shaped top can serve as a foot if the lid, inverted, is turned into a cup. Patina green with patches of red.

Hu wine vessel, late 9th-8th century BCE

China

Not on View
bowl with loop handles on three legs; band of t'ao-t'ieh masks and medallions surrounding rim

Ding (Ritual Food Vessel), 12th century BCE

China

Not on View
teardrop-shaped top, with incised similar shape with a vertical line down center at center of blade on each side; ribs on each outer side of shaft with open loop at bottom of each rib; one side at bottom of shaft has an incised design with a standing stick figure holding a yoke across its shoulders with two elements hanging from each side of yoke; mottled patina--greens, reds

Spearhead (mao), late 13th century BCE

China

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teardrop-shaped top; vertical rib down center on each side of blade, growing wider from tip to shaft; open loop at middle of shaft on each side; one side at bottom of shaft has an incised design with a standing stick figure holding a club or ax in PR hand; mottled patina--greens, reds, browns

Spearhead (mao), late 13th century BCE

China

Not on View
three legs; slightly lobed body; round neck and outward flaring round mouth; one handle in the form of an animal's head with its tongue sticking out; to vertical elements at rim; zigzag/chevron design on body; incised inscription under handle

Ritual wine vessel (jia), 1046-771 BCE

China

Not on View
Ko (weapon); plain surface with beveled edges; cast in two pieces

Dagger-axe ge, 7th-3rd century BCE

China

Not on View
A bovine head in the round decorates this dress hook of gilded bronze inlaid with turquoise in an abstract design. It is a first rate exmple of a well-known type. For a similar dress hook, see Eumorfopoulos, Volume 2, Plate 40.

Garment hook, 4th-3rd century BCE

China

Not on View
Typical features of the advanced Huai style are displayed in this vessel; one of the foremost treasures of Chinese bronze art. The bowl and d lid form a spherical shape. The slight broadening of the body, together with the short, bulbous legs that barely raise it from the ground, give it an amusingly pompous air. The bent ears are big and heavy, contrasting strongly with the slender animals resting on the lid, their heads turned outward and their legs folded under in the style common in Middle Chou and Huai style bronzes. The decor is effected through silver inlay in a variety of patterns large heart-shaped figures on the lower body; geometricized derivatives of crossing dragons in the neck belt; and designs of bird origin on the sides of the handles. The heart shape appears again on the lid in every second angle of the hexagonal motif. Outside of he angles is a motif probably derived from antithetical pairs of bird dragons. These figures are flanked by large, sinuous dragons. An interesting and historically significant feature is the pear-shaped motif on the bodies of the recumbent animals. they reveal the influence of Ordos art (Northern animal style). See BMFEA, Volume 9, Page 104, for a detailed description of the technique for this Ting. Patina dark, brownish-red with green patches.

Ding food vessel, 5th century BCE

China

Not on View
3 bulbous sections at bottom with 3 thin legs; 2 u-shaped handles; incised geometric designs on exterior bulbous sections

Li tripod food vessel, 13th century BCE

China

Not on View

You wine vessel, 12th-11th century BCE

China

Not on View

Tiger, one of a pair, Late 6th or early 5th century BCE

China

Not on View

Ritual Wine Vessel, 12th-11th century BCE

China

Not on View

Ge dagger-ax, 4th century BCE

China

Not on View

Xu food vessel, one of a pair, early 9th century BCE

China

Not on View

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