Ritual vessel (huo) in the form of a bird

Object Details

• Description

  Ceremonial vessel of the type "huo."

  Surface: lustrous olive-brown patina with areas of a dull red incrustation.

  Decoration: in relief and incised.

• Provenance

  To 1911

  Samurai Shokai, Yokohama, to 1911 [1]

  From 1911 to 1919

  Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Samurai Shokai in 1911 [2]

  From 1920

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

  Notes:

  [1] See Original Bronze List, S.I. 220, 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

• Previous custodian or owner

  Samurai Shokai (founded 1894) (C.L. Freer source)

  Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919)

• Origin

  China

• Credit Line

  Gift of Charles Lang Freer

• Type

  Vessel

• Restrictions and Rights

  CC0 - Creative Commons (CC0 1.0)

  This image is in the public domain (free of copyright restrictions). You can copy, modify, and distribute this work without contacting the Smithsonian. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.

  The information presented on this website may be revised and updated at any time as ongoing research progresses or as otherwise warranted. Pending any such revisions and updates, information on this site may be incomplete or inaccurate or may contain typographical errors. Neither the Smithsonian nor its regents, officers, employees, or agents make any representations about the accuracy, reliability, completeness, or timeliness of the information on the site. Use this site and the information provided on it subject to your own judgment. The National Museum of Asian Art welcomes information that would augment or clarify the ownership history of objects in their collections.

Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  BCE 0s

• Name

  Freer, Charles Lang, Samurai Shokai

• Place

  China

• Topic

  Bronze, Art, Chinese Art, Western Han dynasty (206 BCE - 9 CE), Birds, Incising, Dragon, Metal-work, Charles Lang Freer collection, Animals, Sculpture, Eastern Zhou dynasty (770 - 221 BCE), Men

• Culture

  Chinese

• Object Type

  Vessels (containers)