Amphora
CultureChinese
DateWarring States period (475-221 B.C.E.) or Han dynasty (206 B.C.E.-220 C.E.)
MediumDark gray earthernware
DimensionsOverall: 13 1/2 × 13 inches (34.29 × 33.02 cm)
Credit LinePurchase: acquired through the bequest of Jeanne Harris
Object numberF98-9
On View
On viewGallery Location
- 232
Collections
DescriptionA dark grey two-handled vessel decorated with two pairs of large "eyes" on the main body and white decoration under the handles.. The eyes are defined by wide concave borders edged with engraved lines; each is centered with a pointed boss incised with an "X." They are separated from each other by a central ridge on each side of the globular body. The steeply sloping shoulders rise from the body to a short neck decorated with a collar of three rows of fine vertical ribs under a flared mouth. The rim is shaped as a pointed oval, with two sharp points that correspond in placement to the two ridges on the body below. The opposite ends of the rim extend down to two broad arc-shaped handles, each embellished with two concave circular indentations below a pair of curving shallow grooves radiating from the edge of the lip. The smoothly burnished surface shows extensive remains of a white painted lattice design under the handles.
Exhibition History
Rising Dragon: Ancient Treasures from China, The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, 10/6/2007-2/10/2008
The striking silhouette and black body of this vessel are associated with the western province of Sichuan, where such vessels were buried with the dead. The complex form was created by first roughly throwing the body on a wheel, next refining the form into its almond cross-section by molding and carving, and finally adding the handles. The surface was burnished to produce a gloss finish before firing, and the lattice patterns were painted on afterwards.
J. J. Lally & Co.;
Purchased from J. J. Lally & Co. by The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, MO, 1998.
Deborah Emont Scott, ed., The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art: A Handbook of the Collection, 7th ed. (Kansas City, MO: Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, 2008), 299, pl. 53 (repro.).
Information about a particular artwork or image, including provenance information,
is based upon historic information and may not be currently accurate or complete.
Research on artwork and images is an ongoing process, and the information about a
particular artwork or image may not reflect the most current information available to the Museum.
If you notice a mistake or have additional information about a particular artwork or image,
please e-mail provenance@nelson-atkins.org.
