Description
Pair Chinese Han Dynasty Horse Heads
Han Dynasty (206 BC-220 AD) Earthenware Gray pottery
Each approx: 6 Inches High. 6.5 Inches Wide. 2.5 Inches Depth
Accompanied by clear plexiglass display stands. No TL tests but guaranteed period Han Dynasty. Original bills of sale from Anthony Gray London 1985, £1700:, the another from Charlotte Horstmann & Gerald Godfrey LTD. Hong Kong Oct. 4, 1986, HK $28,000.00 ($3,589.00 US). Excellent condition with wear commensurate of age.
Representations of horses, like these finely carved heads, were
placed in the tombs of important people. Horse head
figurines made for funerary purposes have been excavated
from tombs dated to the Warring States period (475-220 B.C.E) and throughout the Han period. Horses were highly prized in China after being introduced from the West. Chinese legend tells of a breed of horse called tianma that could run 300 miles a day and sweat blood at the end of the journey. Strong red paint visible in the folds and textured areas of the figurines indicate that it was once painted red, like other horse figurines produced at the time, to illustrate this story.