New photography by Shannon Ruff captured with a digital camera-2006.

Small Figure of a Crounching Bear

Artist Unknown

CultureChinese | Han dynasty

Date206BC-221AD

MediumMolded gray earthenware

DimensionsOverall: 4 7/8 in. (12.4 cm)

Credit LineGift of an Anonymous Donor and Museum purchase

Object number55.25.1

Collections

Asian Art

On View

On view

DescriptionFigure of a bear. Bear is in a frontal position, sitting as a human might. Front paws rest on stomach, short incised striations used to depict fur, one continuous line center of chest. Bear is flat on reverse with short hole reaching into head. Plane of back of head is leaning forward from the perpendicular plane of the bear's back. Could possible have served as a vessel leg.

Provenance"It is a Small Figure of a Crouching Bear. I am not sure exactly what the function is. Usually little figures of bears like that are vessel legs, like the vessel leg over there. But, I’m not sure if it was exactly how it would attach. I would just say, Small Figure of a Crouching Bear, perhaps the leg to a funerary vessel. In terms of the dates it is Han Dynasty, hard to be more specific, so I’ll give the general dates 206 BC-221 AD. It is molded gray earthenware. And the piece gets an A. This one, in terms of other things you can note about it, possibly it was originally cold painted; mineral pigments applied with a binder after firing as opposed to being glazed and having lost their glaze." -Robert Mowry, Harvard, 11/3/2011Published ReferencesOwl figure of a similar type in SPB Catalog, March 12-13, 1975, Lot 186.