Ritual wine container (you) in the form of two owls with masks (taotie), dragons, and birds

Object Details

• Description

  Ceremonial covered vessel, type you, in the form of two horned owls standing back to back. Patination: outside, gray-green with much red (cuprite) in the furrows of the design; inside, bare metal with incrustations of malachite, cuprite, and azurite.

• Previous custodian or owner

  C.T. Loo & Company (1914-1948)

• Provenance

  From 1941 to 1942

  C. T. Loo & Company, New York in November 1941 [1]

  From 1942

  Freer Gallery of Art, purchased from C. T. Loo & Company on July 24, 1942 [2]

  Notes:

  [1] See C. T. Loo's stockcard no. 87515: "Bronze jar with cover SHANG," C. T. Loo & Frank Caro Archive, Musée Guimet, Paris, copy in object file. The vessel was brought by Loo to the Freer Gallery for examination on March 19, 1942.

  [2] See C. T. Loo's invoice, dated July 24, 1942, copy in object file.

• Origin

  Anyang, probably Henan province, China

• Credit Line

  Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment

• Type

  Vessel

• On View

  Sackler Gallery 23b: Anyang: China's Ancient City of Kings

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  BCE 1000s

• Name

  C.T. Loo & Company

• Place

  China, Henan province, Anyang

• Topic

  Art, Animals, Owl, Chinese Art, Anyang period, Late Shang dynasty (ca. 1300 - 1050 BCE), Birds

• Culture

  Chinese

• Object Type

  Vessels (containers)

• On View

  Yes