SHANG DYNASTY, 13TH CENTURY BC

Details

A BRONZE RITUAL WINE VESSEL, GU
SHANG DYNASTY, 13TH CENTURY BC
The trumpet-shaped upper body is plain. The slightly convex mid-section is flat-cast with two taotie masks that are centered on a narrow flange and have conical pupils, and set between double bow-string bands. The spreading lower body is divided into four quadrants cast with downward-facing dragons facing right below a scroll band. The bronze has a mottled golden and grey patina, and there is malachite encrustation on the interior.
10 3/8 in. (26.2 cm.) high

Provenance

Acquired in Hong Kong, 3 November 2000.

Brought to you by

Michael Bass

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Lot Essay

Three similar gu, dated to the 13th century BC, are illustrated by R.W. Bagley, Shang Ritual Bronzes in the Arthur M. Sackler Collections, Arthur M. Sackler Foundation, 1987, nos. 25, 26 and 27. These three gu, and the present vessel, share the same kind of finely cast leiwen-like scrolls that define the decoration.
A Technical Examination Report is available upon request.

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