Lot 260
260
A rare large painted grey pottery equestrian figure
Christie's charge a buyer's premium of 20.825% of … Read more
A rare large painted grey pottery equestrian figure

WESTERN HAN DYNASTY

Details
A rare large painted grey pottery equestrian figure
Western Han Dynasty
The rider modelled wearing a short tunic and a close fitting helmet tied beneath his chin, his hands positioned to rein in the spirited horse with arched neck, ears laid back, eyes alert and mouth open exposing the teeth, the powerful body with hogged mane, ducked tail and adorned with bossed tassels, some restoration
73.5 cm. high
Special notice
Christie's charge a buyer's premium of 20.825% of the hammer price for lots with values up to NLG 200,000. If the hammer price exceeds the NLG 200,000 then the premium is calculated at 20.825% of the first NLG 200,000 plus 11.9% of any amount in excess of NLG 200,000.

Lot Essay

This unusually large model of this type of equestrian figure is similar to a group of a slightly smaller size unearthed in 1965 from a tomb at Yangjiawan, Xianyang City, Shaanxi, dated to the reigns of the emperors Wendi (reigned 180-157 B.C.) and Jingdi (reigned 157-141 B.C.) and possibly belonging to those of the prime minister Zhou Bo and his son Zhou Yafu. Close to these tomb mounds, eleven attendant tombs were discovered of infantrymen and mounted cavalrymen. Similar examples were exhibited in The Quest for Eternity, Chinese Ceramic Sculptures from the Peoples' Republic of China, Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Catalogue, p.46-47, 105, cat.no.15.

The dating of this lot is consistent with the result of the ASA (Authentification et Datation d'Objets d'Art et d'Archéologie par Méthodes Scientifiques) thermoluminescence test number 10.26.15 - TL 909.010

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