Chinese Han Painted Pottery Horses - TL Tested

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Fine Antiquities, Ethnographic & Fine Art

By Artemis Gallery

Dec 3, 2020

Set Reminder 2020-12-03 10:00:00 2020-12-03 10:00:00 America/New_York Bidsquare Bidsquare : Fine Antiquities, Ethnographic & Fine Art https://www.bidsquare.com/auctions/artemis-gallery/fine-antiquities-ethnographic-fine-art-6119
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• Lot Description
  East Asia, China, Han Dynasty, ca. 206 BCE to 220 CE. Two lively ceramic horses, both striding forward, one facing forward while the other is turning his head to the side perhaps mustering that extra burst of energy to increase speed. Both are beautifully modeled to capture their muscular bodies and great attention was paid to the detailing of their wide-open eyes, pronounced snouts with flared nostrils, open mouths revealing their teeth, raised alert ears, neatly manicured manes, raised and curled tails, and finely delineated relief bridles. The sculptor skillfully delineated the musculature of these noble steeds, giving them a lifelike appearance with the heads more stylized in Han convention. In ancient China, people placed such model figures in tombs to ensure a safe journey to the afterlife. Horses of this size would have graced the tomb of the most elite. Size of largest: 13.875" L x 4.125" W x 7.625" H (35.2 cm x 10.5 cm x 19.4 cm)
  
  Tomb statues like these horses are part of a class of artifacts called mingqi - sometimes known as "spirit utensils" or "vessels for ghosts". They became popular in the Han Dynasty and would persist for several centuries. Alongside figures like this one were musicians, athletes, animals, structures… Even though they were mass produced, mingqi of the Han Dynasty often show a high level of detail and naturalism. These were designed to assist the po, the part of the soul of the deceased that remained underground with the body while the hun, the other part of the soul, ascended. Caring for the po seems to have taken on a new level of meaning in the Han period, with more elaborate rituals and tomb construction arising.
  
  These pieces have been tested using thermoluminescence (TL) analysis and has been found to be ancient and of the period stated. A full report will accompany purchase.
  
  Provenance: private Tucson, Arizona, USA collection, acquired between 1950 and 1985
  
  All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
  
  A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
  
  We ship worldwide and handle all shipping in-house for your convenience.
  
  #147560

  Condition

  Both horses repaired from over a dozen pieces, with restoration to tail of one horse and neck of other horse and areas of bases beneath almost all hooves, and resurfacing with overpainting along new material and break lines. Both horses have chipping and fading to original pigment, nicks and abrasions to legs, bodies, tails, saddles, and heads, softening to some features along repaired areas, and light encrustations. Great preservation of equine stylization and light remains of original pigment. Two TL drill holes on each horse: one beneath abdomen, and one just behind back of saddle.
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