Ritual wine ewer (gong) with masks (taotie) , dragons, and real animals

Ceremonial covered vessel, type guang, evenly patinated outside in shades of gray-green with flecks of cuprite; inside, some azurite with areas of original metal; few incrustations.

Historical period(s)
middle Anyang period, Late Shang dynasty, ca. 1150-1100 BCE
Medium
Bronze
Dimensions
H x W x D (overall): 17 × 19.5 × 9.9 cm (6 11/16 × 7 11/16 × 3 7/8 in)
Geography
China, probably Henan province, Anyang
Credit Line
Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment
Collection
Freer Gallery of Art Collection
Accession Number
F1939.53a-b
On View Location
Sackler Gallery 23a: Anyang: China's Ancient City of Kings
Classification(s)
Metalwork, Vessel
Type

Ritual vessel: gong

Keywords
Anyang period (ca. 1300 - ca. 1050 BCE), bird, China, dragon, elephant, fish, rabbit, wine
Provenance

In 1939
C. T. Loo & Company, New York from March 23, 1939 [1]

From 1939
Freer Gallery of Art, purchased from C. T. Loo & Company on November 30, 1939 [2]

Notes:

[1] See C. T. Loo's stockcard no. 81966: "Bronze wine vessel with cover, Chou," C. T. Loo & Frank Caro Archive, Musée Guimet, Paris, copy in object file. See also "List of objects owned by C. T. Loo & Co., New York [left] at the Gallery for examination," with annotation that the bronze was left by Loo at the Freer Gallery on May 14, 1939, in object file.

[2] See C. T. Loo's invoice, dated November 30, 1939, copy in object file.

Previous Owner(s) and Custodian(s)

C.T. Loo & Company 1914-1948

Description

Ceremonial covered vessel, type guang, evenly patinated outside in shades of gray-green with flecks of cuprite; inside, some azurite with areas of original metal; few incrustations.

Label

The swelling body of this guang draws attention to the vessel’s shape and orderly design. Dragons fill spaces on the spout and lid, while fish, elephants, rabbits, and birds enliven the foot and neck. The handle might have been separately cast and attached with solder.

Published References
  • Daniel Shapiro. Ancient Chinese Bronzes: A Personal Appreciation. .
  • Sueji Umehara. Yin hsu: Ancient Capital of the Shang Dynasty at An-yang. Tokyo. pl. 112 (1).
  • Helen Gardner, Horst de la Croix, Richard G. Tansey. Gardner's Art Through the Ages. 2 vols., , 7th ed. New York. vol. 1: fig. 12.1.
  • Eleanor von Erdberg Consten. Kunst und Religion in Indien, China, und Japan. Geisteswissenschaften Heft 120 Cologne. pl. 12.
  • Capolavori nei secoli: Enciclopedia di tutte i popoli in tutti i tempi. 12 vols., Milan, 1961 - 1964. vol. 3: p. 12, fig. c.
  • Chen Mengjia. Yin Zhou qing tong qi fen lei tu lu [Yin-Chou ch'ing t'ung ch'i fen lei t'u lu]. 2 vols., Dongjing. vol. 2: A 659.
  • Compiled by the staff of the Freer Gallery of Art. A Descriptive and Illustrative Catalogue of Chinese Bronzes: Acquired During the Administration of John Ellerton Lodge. Oriental Studies Series, no. 3 Washington, 1946. pp. 6-7, 27, pl. 7-8.
  • Rene Grousset. Chinese Art and Culture. New York. p. 16.
  • Rene Grousset. La Chine et son Art. Collection Ars et historia Paris. p. 16.
  • Dagny Carter. Four Thousand Years of China's Art. New York. p. 29, a.
  • Smithsonian Institution. Report of the Secretary, 1940. Washington. p. 43, pl. 2.
  • Mario Bussagli. Chinese Bronzes. London and New York. p. 45, pl. 18.
  • Daisy Lion-Goldschmidt, Jean-Claude Moreau-Gobard. Chinese Art: Bronze, Jade, Sculpture, Ceramics. The Universe Library of Antique Art 4 vols., , 1st ed. London and New York. p. 63, pl. 22.
  • Dr. John Alexander Pope, Rutherford John Gettens, James Cahill, Noel Barnard. The Freer Chinese Bronzes. Oriental Studies Series, vol. 1, no. 7 Washington. cat. 42, p. 239.
Collection Area(s)
Chinese Art
Web Resources
Google Cultural Institute
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