Plaque in the shape of a bird-headed creature

Object Details

• Description

  A bronze plaque in the shape of a bird-headed creature seen in profile and covered with decorated gold foil. Details such as eyes and ears, are indicated by striated bands worked into the sheet of hammered gold. Interlaced dragons enframed by striated bands occur along the rounded surface of the plaque.

• Provenance

  Possibly from Xinzheng, Henan province, China [1]

  To ?

  Herbert Mueller (b. 1885), Beijing and Berlin [2]

  To 1979

  Senator and Mrs. Hugh Scott, Washington DC [3]

  From 1979

  Freer Gallery of Art, gift of the Senator and Mrs. Hugh Scott, Washington DC [4]

  Notes:

  [1] Curatorial Remark 3 in the object record.

  [2] Herbert Mueller (also known by his Chinese name, Mi Sunglin) established the Sunglin Collection (see Transactions of the Oriental Ceramics Society, Vol. 18, 1940-1941). See note 1.

  [3] Freer Gallery of Art Purchase List after 1920 file, Collections Management Office. Also see folder sheet note dated September 13, 1995, object file, Collections Managed Office.

  [4] See note 3.

• Collection

  Freer Gallery of Art Collection

• Previous custodian or owner

  Herbert Mueller (1885-1966)

  Senator and Mrs. Hugh Scott

• Origin

  Xinzheng or Henan province, China

• Credit Line

  Gift of The Honorable and Mrs. Hugh Scott

• Type

  Jewelry and Ornament

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  BCE 0s

• Name

  Mueller, Herbert, Scott, Hugh

• Place

  Xinzheng, China, Henan province

• Topic

  Art, Animals, Eastern Zhou dynasty (770 - 221 BCE), Chinese Art, Birds

• Culture

  Chinese

• Object Type

  Ornaments, Jewelry