Basin
Majiayao phase, c. 3300-2650 BCE
Description
Circular basin with everted rim, rounded sides, lower body tapering inward to a flat base, and two crenellated handles positioned bilaterally on the exterior at the juncture where the lower body begins to taper; buff earthenware lightly burnished and decorated with geometric designs painted in dark brown slip before firing; painted designs include dots surrounded by concentric rings and sweeping arcs, bound by undulating parallel lines (on the interior), encircled dots separated by patterns of oblique triangles arranged in symmetrical clusters (on the rim), and two dots surrounded by concentric rings on the exterior walls. Majiayao culture, Majiayao type. From the upper Yellow River valley region; Gansu, Qinghai, or Ningxia province.
Dimensions
H. 12.2 x D. 31.2 cm (4 13/16 x 12 5/16 in.)
Provenance
[J.J. Lally & Co., New York, May 2004] sold; to Walter C. Sedgwick Foundation, Woodside, CA (2004-2006), partial gift; to Harvard University Art Museums, 2006.
Related Artworks
View MoreJizhou ware: light gray stoneware with dark brown glaze and with papercut decoration reserved in dark brown glaze against a variegated buff ground on the interior. From the kilns at Yonghe, Ji'an, Jiangxi province.
12th-13th centuryChineseHard-paste porcelain and silver
18th centuryGermanSilver
17th-19th centuryFrenchPorcelain with clear glaze
14th-16th centuryChineseLight gray stoneware with buff surfaces and localized areas of natural ash glaze. Possibly made near Kyŏngju, North Kyŏngsang province.
11th-13th centuryKoreanWhite ware: porcelain with ivory glaze stained brown. Probably made in Kwangju-gun, Kyŏnggi province.
17th-18th centuryKoreanHard-paste porcelain decorated with a powdered-purple fond, polychrome enamels and gold
18th centuryGermanTerracotta
5th century BCEEtruscanJizhou ware: light gray stoneware with dark brown and transparent amber glazes. From the kilns at Yonghe, Ji'an, Jiangxi province.
12th-13th centuryChineseTerracotta
GreekSilver
18th centuryAmerican