Basin with two anthropomorphic handles
Majiayao phase, c. 3300-2650 BCE
Description
Small circular basin with two arching handles rising upward from the rim, each terminating in a molded form resembling a human face; lower portion of vessel tapers inward to a flat base; buff earthenware lightly burnished and decorated with geometric designs painted in dark brown slip before firing; painted designs include dotted concentric circles and undulating lines; a faint grid-like pattern of lines painted on the base. Majiayao culture, Majiayao type. From the upper Yellow River valley region; Gansu, Qinghai, or Ningxia province.
Dimensions
H. 10.4 x W. (across handles) 23.7 x Diam. 15.7 cm (4 1/8 x 9 5/16 x 6 3/16 in.)
Provenance
[Eskenazi, Ltd., London, 2001] sold; to Walter C. Sedgwick Foundation, Woodside, CA (2001-2006), partial gift; to Harvard University Art Museums, 2006.
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