Tomb model of a watch tower

Object Details

• Description

  Model of a watch tower in two stories and roof, set in a bowl-shaped moat (4 sections). Figures of archers and birds; of swans, frogs, turtles and fish in the moat

  Clay: soft, reddish.

  Glaze: green, slightly iridescent.

  Decoration: incised parallel lines.

• Label

  A tower of two stories, each protected by its own roof, stands in a bowl-shaped moat containing small models of swans, frogs, turtles, and fish. Perching birds and human sentries are located at the four corners of each level. Earthenware towers, such as the one seen here, are sometimes found among the grave goods in tombs from the Eastern Han dynasty (25-220 C.E.), and are often covered in a green glaze that has developed a slight iridescence from prolonged burial. The Eastern Han was an unsettled period and these structures may represent the kind of fortified towers in which landowners and their families sought refuge during times of warfare and social turmoil. The balustrades and bracketing system of the roofs illustrate some basic elements of the Chinese architectural tradition during the first centuries of the common era.

• Provenance

  To 1907

  Unidentified owner, China, to 1907 [1]

  From 1907 to 1919

  Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased in China from an unidentified owner in 1907 [2]

  From 1920

  Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]

  Notes:

  [1] See Original Pottery List, L. 1532, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives.

  [2] See note 1.

  [3] The original deed of Charles Lang Freer's gift was signed in 1906. The collection was received in 1920 upon the completion of the Freer Gallery.

• Collection

  Freer Gallery of Art Collection

• Exhibition History

  Connecting Stories at the National Museum of Asian Art (April 29, 2023 - ongoing)

  Palaces and Pavilions: Grand Architecture in Chinese Painting (September 29, 2002 to March 30, 2003)

  Chinese Ceramics (March 15, 1982 to July 10, 1986)

  Chinese Art (March 9, 1981 to March 12, 1982)

  Chinese Ceramics (May 9, 1980 to March 6, 1981)

  Chinese Ceramics (April 11, 1978 to September 4, 1980)

  Chinese Calligraphy and Ceramics (April 18, 1977 to April 8, 1978)

  Chinese Art (January 1, 1963 to March 6, 1981)

  Special Exhibition, Chinese Art, 1946 (August 7, 1946 to January 7, 1947)

  Chinese Panels and Han Pottery (February 25, 1925 to July 19, 1943)

• Previous custodian or owner

  Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919)

• Origin

  China

• Credit Line

  Gift of Charles Lang Freer

• Type

  Model

• On View

  Sackler Gallery 26: Connecting Stories at the National Museum of Asian Art

• Restrictions and Rights

  CC0 - Creative Commons (CC0 1.0)

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  100s

• Name

  Freer, Charles Lang

• Place

  China

• Topic

  Copper-green lead glaze, Charles Lang Freer collection, Art, Han dynasty, 202 B.C.-220 A.D., Chinese Art, Pottery, Tower, Iridescence, Ceramics

• Culture

  Chinese

• Object Type

  Models

• On View

  Yes