Hu Bronze Wine Storage Jar

Artist Unknown

CultureChinese

Dateca. 500 B.C.E.

MediumCast bronze

DimensionsOverall: 11 3/4 in. (29.8 cm)

Credit LineMuseum purchase

Object number59.82.1

Collections

Asian Art

Not on view

DescriptionHu void of decoration for 3.4 cm below mouth. Then, there is a wide band of Kuei dragons in extremely low relief bordered by narrow bands of a spiral pattern. Body contains two main registers, each with many low relief depictions of birds with snakes in their beaks, turtles & fish. Two large ring handles fastened to relief 'dao tie' masks on shoulders of vessel. One smaller similarly fastened ring close to foot equidistant between two large handles. Bottom quarter of vessel void of decoration. Foot .75" high with a braided design in relief.

Label TextHu Bronze Wine Storage Jar, ca. 500 B.C.E. Chinese, Eastern Zhou Dynasty Cast bronze Museum purchase 59.82.1Exhibition History"Edward Steichen: In Exaltation of Flowers," Chrysler Museum of Art, Norfolk, VA, February 23 - November 28, 2021.Published ReferencesLaufer, B., _Chinese Pottery of the Han Dynasty_, pg. 84, fig. 21, line drawing of similar piece with same decoration, drawing from KI QING GU JIAN, 1909. _Oriental Art_, Autumn 1977, vol XXIII, no. 3, p. 341. Quanyu Wang, Yu Chen, and Rongyu Su, _Houma Bronzes in The British Museum: A Technical Study," from _Orientations_, Volume 50 Number 6 (Hong Kong: Om Publishing, 2019), fig. 14, page 53.