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Lot Essay
The present type of jade vertical ornaments known as zan, was used in conjunction with archaic bronze gu during rituals, where it was used to stir heated wine, allowing the aroma of the wine to be released (fig. 1). The Tianjin Museum houses a jade zan with a eleven-character inscription, where it includes the character zan (fig. 2).
The association of zan with gu is also represented through imagery, as seen on the pictograph cast on an archaic bronze zun included by Umehara Sueji, Nihon Shucho Shina Kodo Seika [Selected Relics of Ancient Chinese Bronzes from Collections in Japan], vol. 2, no. 138 (fig. 3).
The association of zan with gu is also represented through imagery, as seen on the pictograph cast on an archaic bronze zun included by Umehara Sueji, Nihon Shucho Shina Kodo Seika [Selected Relics of Ancient Chinese Bronzes from Collections in Japan], vol. 2, no. 138 (fig. 3).