Detail View: National Palace English: Bronze Gu vessel with animal mask motif
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Work ID:
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M01B00039
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Title:
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Bronze Gu vessel with animal mask motif
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Creation Date:
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Late Shang Dynasty
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Start Year Date:
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B.C.1321
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End Year Date:
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B.C.1045
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Dynasty:
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05 Shang Dynasty (c. 1600 ~1100 B.C.)
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Creation Place:
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China
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Measurements:
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Height: 32 cm; Weight: 1175g
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Material:
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Bronze
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Form:
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Gu (wine vessel)
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Type:
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Bronzes
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Repository:
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The National Palace Museum, Taipei
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Description:
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he slender neck of this gu is decorated with banana-leaf patterns; across the center of its belly is the horizontal snake pattern, and the rest of its belly and feet are covered with various animal mask motifs with protruding flanges. The round foot is covered with horizontal tiger patterns. The whole vessel is decorated with at least four different animal motifs.Two cross-shaped patterns mark the division between the belly and the round foot. This is a rare phenomenon because in most cases patterns actually penetrate through the vessel and make cross-shaped openings. This resulted from the use of thinner padding during the casting process. If the paddings are thicker than the thickness of the vessel, cross-shaped openings are formed. Above the openings is the belly of the vessel that can still hold ceremonial wines; beneath the openings is the round foot, which obviously could not be used up side down. Therefore, the cross-shaped openings are decorative; instead, they are traces of an old casting technique.
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ImageV ID:
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M01B00039AS001
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Rights:
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Lee & Lee Communications
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