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A dark green cast bronze vessel in the form of a duck. It stands on its two feet with its head up and facing the right. It has a wide lid on its back that is attached by a chain. The entire piece is inscribed with a swirling pattern and fine lines that mimic feathers along the body.

A dark green cast bronze vessel in the form of a duck that is facing to the viewer’s right. It stands on its two feet that flare out flat at the bottoms. It’s body is large and round with its head standing up. Its head has a long beak, wide circular eyes, and some curved flared shapes behind its head. Its tail is small and thick. It has a wide lid on its back that is attached by a chain that attaches near the tail. The entire piece is inscribed with a swirling pattern and fine lines that mimic feathers along the body.

Gallery Text

The move of the Zhou capital eastward in the wake of nomadic invasions marked a diminution of Zhou authority and the rise in power of surrounding states. Although in the earlier Western Zhou period, bronze was employed primarily for ritual vessels, weapons, and tools, during the Eastern Zhou era, it began to be used to make mirrors, bells, and chariot fittings as well. Bronze mirrors were polished smooth on their reflective sides, and their backs were intricately decorated with auspicious symbols or cosmological designs. Their reflectivity was believed to create light in a darkened tomb and to ward off evil. Chariots were vital for military warfare, and those of the powerful were fitted with ornate finials and attachments, which during the Warring States period (475–221 BCE) were often inlaid with precious stones and metals. This technique was also employed with greater frequency in the casting of bronze vessels, revealing yet another shift in the function of such objects, from commemorative status symbols to more decorative vestiges of a ritual tradition.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
1944.57.4
Title
'He' Ritual Wine Vessel in the Form of a Standing Duck
Classification
Vessels
Work Type
vessel
Date
probably 5th century BCE
Places
Creation Place: East Asia, China
Period
Zhou dynasty, Warring States period, 475-221 BCE
Culture
Chinese
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/204198

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Cast bronze with gray-green patina
Dimensions
H. 20.5 x W. 17 x L. 30.8 cm (8 1/16 x 6 11/16 x 12 1/8 in.)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
Private Collection (by 1944), gift; to Fogg Art Museum, 1944.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Anonymous gift
Accession Year
1944
Object Number
1944.57.4
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
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Publication History

  • Sueji Umehara, Shina-Kodo Seikwa (Selected Relics of Ancient Chinese Bronzes from Collections in Europe and America), Yamanaka & Co. (Osaka, Japan, 1933), part 1, vol. 3, no. 193
  • Exhibition of Ancient Chinese Bronzes and Buddhist Art Dating from Shang Dynasty 1766 B.C. to Yuan Dynasty A.D. 1367, auct. cat., Yamanaka & Co. (New York, NY, October 1938), p. 51, no. 41
  • Rong Geng [Jung Keng], Shang Zhou Yiqi Tongkao (The Bronzes of Shang and Chou), Harvard-Yenching Institute (Beijing, 1941), vol. 2, p. 368, no. 694
  • Chen Mengjia, Yin Zhou qingtongqi fenlei tulu (A corpus of Chinese bronzes in American Collections), Kyuko Shoin (Tokyo, Japan, 1977), vol. 1, p. 128, A 679; vol. 2, p. 982, A 679 (ill.)
  • Susanne Ebbinghaus, ed., Animal-Shaped Vessels from the Ancient World: Feasting with Gods, Heroes, and Kings, exh. cat. (Cambridge, MA, 2018), pp. 78-79, fig. 2; p. 359, cat. 32

Exhibition History

Subjects and Contexts

  • Collection Highlights
  • Google Art Project

Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu