For Customers outside of USA

Exceptionally Well Preserved, Colorful Genuine Ancient Ceramic “Sancai” (Three Color) Glazed Porcelain Votive Musician About 900 A.D.

CLASSIFICATION: Sancai Glazed Porcelain Statue.

ATTRIBUTION: Ancient China, Tang Dynasty, 9th or 10th Century A.D.

SIZE/MEASUREMENTS:

Height: 145 millimeters (5 3/4 inches)

Breadth: 58 millimeters (2 1/3 inches).

Depth (Thickness): 60 millimeters (2 1/3 inches)

CONDITION: Excellent and original (no repairs). Most ceramic glaze is intact, though some is slight oxidization (rough and chalky – not glossy). Some “crackling” or crazing of the ceramic glaze – but common to ancient porcelain and ceramics. A few blemishes consistent with any decorative item which was buried for over a thousand years. Not flawless, but certainly in a wonderful state of preservation – and unrepaired! Stands on its own.

DETAIL: A nicely preserved, large ceramic statuette so wonderfully characteristic of Tang Dynasty “sancai” glazed statuary. Highly prized, Sancai, or three-color glazes principally in yellow, green and brown was a development of the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD). Sancai ("three-colored") wares were first made for burial, using lead-based glazes that produced mottled and streaky effects in green, amber-brown, and cream, with an occasional addition of blue or black. The production of such exquisite porcelain items required multiple firings of fine white clay at temperatures near 1000c (1800f) degrees. A wide variety of statuettes were commonly produced such as musicians, chamberlains (butlers), maids, cooks, even animals; all designed to serve their deceased master. Working backwards in time, sancai statuary found its foundations all the way back in the Han Dynasty (206BC-220AD).

Beginning during the Han Dynasty grave/tomb interiors in ancient China were richly furnished with a wide variety of miniature objects, usually fashioned as replicas of actual possessions, animals, or buildings. Called “spirit goods”, these items were used as substitutes for valuable possessions, and were usually produced in ceramic and were glazed or colorfully painted. The wealthy elite's increasing interest in elaborately furnished tombs led to the mass production of armies of ceramic figures made using molds. In the case of the royal burial of the sole Qin Emperor, a terra cotta army of 6,000 was produced in full size. Burial ceramics made during the Han Dynasty, through the Tang Dynasty and beyond were decorated with simple but colorful designs painted directly onto the unglazed fired pieces or with brown and/or green lead-based glazes (“Celadon Green” and “Sancai” glazes amongst them) that could be fired at low temperatures.

This particular depiction is that of a musician, and you might note that the sancai glaze is almost entirely intact. There are a few places where the glaze has decomposed, probably due to contact with the soil. This means rather than being glossy, the glaze has become rough, pitted, feeling sandy to the touch, and not glossy. This is inevitable with ancient porcelain and ceramic glazes, and is as much a testament to the age of the piece as it is a detriment. There is also some crazing or “crackling” of the glaze – again this is common to ancient glazed porcelain and ceramic finishes – as is the light pitting which is evident here and there (part of the decomposition process of the glaze). Overall however, the glaze is remarkably intact, extraordinary for a piece over 1,000 years old. Glazed white, brown, and green, this style of Tang glazed ceramic artwork is extremely popular with collectors around the world. You can see that though faded, even the black and red paint of the hair and head remains discernible, and to a lesser extent, even the white paint of the face.

During the Tang dynasty, production of sancai pottery figurines such as this dominated the pottery scene, and their production continued well into the Ming era which advanced the art with more intense colors and finer porcelain clay. The pottery and porcelain figures produced from the Tang all the way through the Ming Dynasties are famous even until today for their beautiful multicolored glazes occurring on both mortuary pieces for funerary use as well as on utilitarian pieces for use in China as well as exported to Egypt and elsewhere. This piece is a long ways away from being perfect, but it is intact and unrepaired. The musician’s features are quite expressive – and though not absolutely perfect, Tang sancia glazed statuary in such fine condition is relatively rare.

Ordinarily statuary like this is unearthed in pieces – shattered. So the fact that this is unrepaired and intact is noteworthy. Of course there is the customary and expected minor scuffs, marks, dings, etc., all evidence of a lifespan of over one thousand years spent mostly buried. Of course realistically one would expect some blemishes after such an ordeal, and there are no surprises here except that there are so few blemishes. Overall the statuette is in very good condition and is a highly collectible piece of Tang Dynasty ancient Chinese funerary ceramic art. If you’d like an authentic ancient piece of ancient Tang sancai-glazed statuary, you could not go wrong with this one. It is solidly shaped, nicely featured, and nicely proportioned. You could display this one with great pride either at work on your desk or at home. Whether at home or at work, it will certainly generate curiosity and perhaps even a little envy!

HISTORY OF TANG EARTHENWARE: The four century period between the Han Dynasty and the Sui/Tang Dynasty was characterized by the fragmentation of China and a prolonged power struggle. Despite the chaotic conditions of the period, ceramic production flourished. There were many notable advances in ceramic arts, including green-glazed stoneware, highly durable and often fashioned into bowls and jars. Potters of the era continued improving the quality of these early “Celadon” wares both with respect to glaze color and in body clay. The production of glazed porcelain was a significant achievement in Chinese ceramic history. It was eventually exported as far as the Philippines and Egypt. Ceramic figurines produced during the period were notable for increased detail. The most profound influence on the art of the period (including ceramics) was the Buddhist religion which came from neighboring India. Objects imported from the Middle East and Central and West Asia also strongly influenced the period’s ceramic arts.

Eventually China was reunified under the Tang Dynasty (618-906 A.D.). China's Golden Age was characterized by a stable government, and the resulting economic prosperity brought about a flourishing of all the arts, including painting, ceramics, metalwork, music, and poetry. Important influences from the Middle East, brought by traders and artisans from many nations, stimulated new styles in metalwork and ceramics. Colorfully glazed earthenware, especially ewers and rhytons (drinking vessels) closely resembling Persian silverwork, drew inspiration from metal prototypes. During the Tang era, the technique of producing and firing fine-grained white clay into what is known today as porcelain was perfected. The combination of fine white clay and sophisticated kiln technology gave birth to the first translucent white ceramics which were truly porcelain.

Both the white and the green-glazed porcelain varieties became highly prized by both the wealthy Chinese and foreigners. The green “celadon” porcelains possessed a subtle bluish-green glaze and were characterized by their simple and elegant shapes. Both the celadon and white varieties were so popular that production on a huge scale continued at various kiln centers throughout China well into the succeeding dynasties, and the product was shipped as far as Egypt, Southeast Asia, Korea and Japan. It was also during the Tang dynasty that sancai ("three-colored") wares were first made for burial, using glazes that produced mottled and streaky effects in green, amber-brown, and cream, with an occasional addition of blue. The technique is most famed today as the beautiful multicolored glazes of the Tang dynasty pottery figures of both humans and animals. The glaze occurs on both mortuary pieces for funerary use as well as on utilitarian pieces for use in China as well as for export.

HISTORY OF EARTHENWARE IN ANCIENT CHINA: Want to know a little more about the history of pottery in ancient China? Click right here.

HISTORY OF THE TANG DYNASTY: The collapse of the Han dynasty was followed by nearly four centuries (220-589 A.D.) of relative anarchy. Petty kingdoms waged incessant warfare against one another. Unity was restored briefly in the early years of the Jin Dynasty (A.D. 265-420), but by 317 A.D. China again disintegrated into a succession of petty dynasties that was to last from 304 to 589 A.D. China was reunified in A.D. 589 by a military leader from Northwest China who founded the short-lived Sui Dynasty (581-618 A.D.). The tyrannical Sui Dynasty met an early demise due to the government's imposition of crushing taxes, compulsory labor, and ruthless attempts to homogenize the various sub-cultures. Though monumental engineering feats such as the completion of the Grand Canal and the reconstruction of the Great Wall were accomplished, it was at an enormous price. There were noteworthy technological advances including the invention of gunpowder (for use in fireworks) and the wheelbarrow, as well as significant advances in medicine, astronomy, and cartography. However weakened by costly and disastrous military campaigns against Korea and faced with a disaffected population, the dynasty disintegrated through a combination of popular revolts, disloyalty, and a coup which culminated in the assassination of the Emperor of the Sui Dynasty.

One of the coup leaders installed his father as emperor, thus founding the T'ang Dynasty (618 to 907 A.D.), and eventually succeeded his father to the throne. The Tang dynasty is regarded by historians as a high point in Chinese civilization. During the Tang dynasty China became an expansive, cosmopolitan empire. The capital city became the world's largest city, a center of culture and religious toleration, and attracted traders and immigrants from all over the world, enriching Chinese art and culture with their foreign influences. Stimulated by contact with India and the Middle East, the empire saw a flowering of creativity in many fields. Originating in India around the time of Confucius, Buddhism flourished during the Tang period, becoming a distinct variation and a permanent part of Chinese traditional culture. The system of civil service examinations for recruitment of the bureaucracy, designed to draw the best talents into government, was so well refined that it survived into the 20th century. The civil service which developed created a large class of literate Confucian scholar-officials who often functioned as intermediaries between the grass-roots level and the government.

Branches of both the imperial and local governments were restructured and enhanced to provide a centralized administration, and an elaborate code of administrative and penal law was enacted. The military exploits of the earliest rules created a Tang Empire even larger than that of the Han. Block printing was invented, making the written word available to vastly greater audiences and the Tang period became a golden age of literature and art. Handicraft guilds, the use of paper money, and commercial centralization all started during the late Tang Dynasty. However by the middle of the eighth century A.D., Tang power was ebbing. A unified military had dissolved into a series of petty military chiefdoms who regularly withheld taxes and support from a crumbling central government. Domestic economic instability and military defeat by Arabs in Central Asia marked the beginning of five centuries of steady decline. Misrule, court intrigues, economic mismanagement, and popular rebellions weakened the empire, making it possible for northern invaders to shatter the unity of the dynasty in 907 A.D. The next half-century saw the fragmentation of China into five northern dynasties and ten southern kingdoms.

HISTORY OF ANCIENT CHINESE CIVILIZATION: Want to know a little more about the history of human civilization in ancient China? Click right here.

A certificate of authenticity (COA) is available upon request. Artifacts are mailed from the USA. Due to its fragile nature this particular piece is only shipped in an oversized box with lots of Styrofoam peanuts. The cost for shipping this item includes delivery confirmation (you can track your shipment on-line at the USPS Web Site). Additional items shipped together do result in a discount. The shipping weight of this item is 1 pounds. Various rates for shipping both domestically and internationally may be viewed here. A wide variety of cost-effective methods are available including surface mail, air mail, and expedited mail.