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Arthur M. Sackler Gallery | Gallery 29
Southeast Asian Art
Red painted spirals swirl in distinct patterns across the surfaces of these vessels, testifying to the sophisticated material and aesthetic cultures of northeastern Thailand more than two thousand years ago. Their makers belonged to a loose network of settlements specializing in bronze and ceramic production. Tragically, the region has been heavily looted in recent history. The pots, once ritually buried in gravesites as objects of prestige and remembrance, were unearthed recklessly and stripped of their historical context. As a result, little is known about these vessels and the people who made them. Recent research into their materials, techniques, and designs opens new lines of inquiry into the regionโs heritage and its profound cultural and material legacy.
Video | Meditation & Mindfulness: Vessel on pedestal foot | View on YouTube
Vessel on pedestal foot (detail), Northeast Thailand, Ban Chiang culture, late period, 300 BCEโ200 CE, earthenware with red pigment, Gift of Victor and Takako Hauge, Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, S2004.24
1050 Independence Ave. SW
Washington, DC 20013
202.633.1000
ยฉ 2025 Smithsonian Institution
Ban Chiang culture, late period
Northeast Thailand
Earthenware with white slip and red pigment
S2004.17
Ban Chiang culture, late period
Northeast Thailand
Earthenware with red pigment
S2004.18
Ban Chiang culture, late period
Northeast Thailand
Earthenware with white slip and red pigment
S2004.22
Ban Chiang culture, late period
Northeast Thailand
Earthenware with red pigment
S2004.23
Ban Chiang culture, late period
Northeast Thailand
Earthenware with red pigment
S2004.24
Ban Chiang culture, late period
Northeast Thailand
Earthenware
S2004.41
Ban Chiang culture, late period
Northeast Thailand
Earthenware with red pigment
S2004.45
Possibly Ban Chiang Middle period
Northeast Thailand
Earthenware with white slip and red pigment
S2004.47
Possibly Ban Chiang Middle period
Northeast Thailand
Earthenware
S2004.50
Ban Chiang culture, late period
Sakon Nakhon province, Northeast Thailand
Earthenware with white slip and red pigment
S2004.56
Ban Chiang culture, late period
Sakon Nakhon province, Northeast Thailand
Earthenware with white slip and red pigment
S2004.57
Ban Prasat culture, mortuary phase 2
Nakhon Ratchasima (Khorat) province, Northeast Thailand
Earthenware with red slip
S2004.58
Ban Prasat culture, mortuary phase 2
Nakhon Ratchasima (Khorat) province, Northeast Thailand
Earthenware with red slip
S2004.60
Prehistoric period
Thailand
Earthenware
S2005.187