TANG DYNASTY (AD 618-907)

Details

A PAIR OF PAINTED POTTERY FIGURES OF FEMALE DANCERS
TANG DYNASTY (AD 618-907)
Each graceful dancer wears a bead necklace, a long scarf tied diagonally around her body over a short jacket and long skirt, as well as an under-blouse with long, narrow sleeves that she flings to the right and above her left shoulder to enhance the graceful, undulating movement of the dance. Her face is modeled and detailed with delicate features, and her hair is dressed in an elaborate double-winged coiffure. There are traces of red and black pigment.
9 ¾ in. (24.8 cm.) high

Provenance

J. J. Lally & Co., New York, 18 April 1989.

Brought to you by

Michael Bass

asianartny@christies.com +1 212 636 2180

Lot Essay

Music and dance were highly popular at the Tang court, and the slender bodies and costume of these two dancers reflect the fashion for women during the early part of the Tang dynasty. They are very similar, including the coiffure, to two painted pottery dancers included in the Exhibition of Chinese Arts, C.T. Loo & Co., New York, 1 November 1941 - 30 April 1942, no. 431. See, also, the drawing of such a figure illustrated by E. Schloss, Ancient Ceramic Sculpture from Han Through T'ang, 2 vols., Stamford, Connecticut, vol. I, p. 140, no. 13. 1977.

The results of Oxford thermoluminescence test nos. 566b45 and 566b46 are consistent with the dating of this lot.

More from Fine Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art part I

View All