Vase+in+the+Shape+of+an+Archaic+Bronze+Vessel

=Vase in the Shape of an Archaic Bronze Vessel (Gu)=

Name: Vase in the Shape of an Archaic Bronze Vessel (Gu) Artist: Chen Jinhou Place made: Jiangsu Province, China Date: 18th Century Size: Height 10 1/8 in (25.7 cm) Accession Number: 1984.472 Now in Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. The Artwork was a gift fron Michael Abraham in 1984. __Introduction:__ This artwork was made in the Qing dynasty in the 18th century, most likely during the reign of the Emperor Qianlong (r. XX-XX). During the Qing dynasty much attention was given to the arts of former Chinese dynasties from more glorious times. This vase in the shape of an archaic bronze vessel is an example of an artwork made in the Qing dynasty that was meant to emulate past artworks.

__Descriptive Analysis:__ This artwork dating from the 18th century during the Qing Dynasty is in the shape of a traditional bronze wine vessel called a //gu//. The piece is made from dark clay and has a dull, matte, brown colored glaze over its entirety. The vessel appears quite thin and narrow at the bottom and then expands out at the top almost in a trumpet like fashion. Decorations, similar to the //taotie// masks found on early ritual bronzes of the Shang and Zhou dynasties are present over much of the surface of the vase. The vase can be divided into five parts, the base, an indented band, a middle section, a second indented band, and finally the mouth of the vessel. The base of the vessel which tapers to a narrower shape from the bottom to the top of the section has decorations over all of its surface area. Four raised spine like ridges extend from the bottom of the base to the top of the base vertically, these spine like ridges divide the base portion into four parts. Between the four spine like ridges on the bottom section of the base there are numerous decorations that use the spiral like design known as the thundercloud pattern to form various shapes reminiscent of the //taotie// mask. The next section is the thin indented band; this indented band appears very smooth and contains no decorations except for two horizontal raised bands and a small cross shaped hole between the two raised bands. The middle section, which is the narrowest section of the vessel, appears to be somewhat thicker than the thin indented bands. The four spine like ridges that are on the base reappear on this mid section, again between these four raised ridges are more decorations using the thundercloud pattern to shape the face like Taotie mask. The next section which is the smallest section is a thin smooth indented band. The final largest section of the vessel is the wide mouth of the vase. On the exterior of this section the spine like ridges morph into wider raised bands of decorations using the thundercloud pattern. In these raised bands, snake like animals can be clearly seen which form the shape of a //taotie// mask pattern. Between these raised bands of decorations the vase is again smooth with no ornamentation.

__Formal Analysis:__ The Qing Dynasty was the last dynasty of imperial China; the leaders of the dynasty were Manchu people from the north of China. Because the Qing Dynasty leaders were not actually Han Chinese, in their art and other cultural activities they sought to portray themselves as Chinese as much as possible to affirm their legitimacy.3 In the arts they looked back to the past glorious times of China and sought to emulate the artworks of those times. This particular artwork is in the style of the //gu// type bronze vessels of the ancient Shang Dynasty. The //gu// vessel was a very prominent bronze vessel during the Shang Dynasty and was probably designed as a wine vessels to be used in sacrificial rights.2 The bronze //gu// vessels are often found in tombs alongside //jue// vessels and were probably a type of a status symbol for the ancient Chinese.4 These types of ancient bronzes were being unearthed throughout China during the time of the Qing Dynasty. The exact spiritual purpose of //gu// vessel was not known to the artisans of the Qing Dynasty, but it still was seen as spiritually significant.1 The decoration on the ancient bronze vessels often featured patterns called the //taotie// mask, these masks are anamorphic shapes made up of several different animals, these masks probably represented a glutinous demon. The //taotie// mask is also often used in later imitations including this vessel.

Emperor Qianlong was the Qing Emperor during most of the 18th century in China. Qianlong fancied himself a man of the arts and set about amassing an enormous amount of art for his private collection, included in his collection were numerous ancient bronzes.3 These bronzes would provide the inspiration for a new fad in the ceramics industry of emulating the shapes of the different ancient bronzes. It was from this fad that this vase in the shape of an archaic bronze vessel was born. __Personal Interpretation:__ This piece is very interesting to me as a person interested in history because it is an example of a later Chinese dynasty, that of the Qing Dynasty, looking back on glorious times of the Chinese past and imitating them in contemporary art forms, almost as a way to relive the glory days of their past. The fact that even though the original significance of the decorations like the //taotie// mask may have been forgot, their use shows that they still held great significance to the Chinese craftsmen making them and to the patrons commissioning them. To me this use of ancient designs in pottery from centuries later helps to show the importance of things like filial piety and respect of ancestors to the Chinese Culture.

__References:__ 1. Huichun, Yu. “Qianlong’s Divine Treasures: the Bells in Rhyming-the Old Hall//.”// Asia Major, Third Series, Vol. 22, 2009. Pg. 121-144. This article is not about Bronze vessels; instead it is about ancient bronze bells but it is still of use in this because it mentions some of the significance of ancient bronzes in the Qing dynasty.

2. Loehr, Max. //Ritual Vessels of Bronze Age China.// New York: Asia Society, 1968. This source is rather old but it seems to be considered one of the definitive works on the topic. The source discusses the meaning and purposes of ancient bronze vessels of China.

3. Smith, Richard J. //China’s Cultural Heratige: the Qing Dynasty, 1644- 1911.// Boulder: Westview Press, 1994. Pg. 187-210. This book is aging but it had an excellent chapter on the imitation of ancient vessels during the Qing dynasty.

4. Thorp, Robert L. //China in the Early Bronze Age: Shang Civilization.// Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2006. Pg 191-208. This source provides much information on the different shapes and designs, along with the purposes of the bronze vessels of ancient China, specifically in the Shang dynasty

5. “Vase in the Shape of an Archaic Bronze Vessel (Gu)” 23, March, 2013, [] This is where the original artwork and some of the information of it provenance was found.

6.“Vessel. Gu-Shaped with Flanges. Made of Bronze.” 23, March, 2013. [] this is where the second picture of an ancient Gu was found.