A MASSIVE SICHUAN GRAY POTTERY FIGURE OF A STRIDING HORSE

HAN DYNASTY

Details

A MASSIVE SICHUAN GRAY POTTERY FIGURE OF A STRIDING HORSE
Han Dynasty
Impressively modeled striding proudly forward on slender, well-modeled legs, with head raised and ears alertly pricked, the lips of the prominent muzzle open wide exposing large teeth, with chevron eyebrows over prominent eyes, with short bound tail and spiral pattern incised on the rump, traces of red pigment remaining in the incised details, the saddle blanket lifting slightly at the corners
61in. (156cm.) high

Lot Essay

This horse is very similar to and is most likely based on large bronze horses of the same period, such as the one (135cm.) excavated in 1990 from Han tomb no. 2, Heijiashan, Mianyang city, Sichuan province, and illustrated with the figure of a groom in Gems of China's Cultural Relics 1997, no. 83. These bronze and pottery horses share the same elegant yet lively posture and demeanor as well as crispness in modeling.
Compare, also, the massive green-glazed red pottery horse sold in these rooms 20 March 1997, lot 51, from the Jingguantang Collection, Part II.
The result of Oxford Authentication Ltd. thermoluminescence test no. C198p12 is consistent with the dating of this lot