Tomb jar with figures of musicians

Detail of a pattern
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At A Glance

  • Period

    12th-15th century
  • Geography

    possibly Guangdong province, China
  • Material

    Stoneware with iron glaze
  • Dimension

    H x Diam: 19.7 × 17.7 cm (7 3/4 × 7 in)
  • Accession Number

    F1916.230a-c
  • EDAN ID

    edanmdm:fsg_F1916.230a-c

Object Details

  • Description

    Sepulchral vase: ovoidal. Wood stand.
    Clay: hard, grayish stoneware.
    Glaze: black, mottled with brown; earth deposits.
    Decoration: two rows of figures of musicians and mourners, a coffin and a table of offerings, in high relief.
  • Provenance

    To 1916
    Li Wenqing (late 19th-early 20th century), Shanghai, to 1916 [1]
    From 1916 to 1919
    Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Li Wenqing, in New York, in 1916 [2]
    From 1920
    Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]
    Notes:
    [1] See Original Pottery List, L. 2476, 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

    Early Chinese Pottery and Scultpure, Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1916 (March 6 to October 15, 1916)
  • Previous custodian or owner

    Li Wenqing 李文卿 (ca. 1869-1931) (C.L. Freer source)
    Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919)
  • Origin

    possibly Guangdong province, China
  • Credit Line

    Gift of Charles Lang Freer
  • Type

    Vessel
  • Restrictions and Rights

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