East Asia, China, Tang Dynasty, ca. 618 to 906 CE. A fine pair of mold-formed pottery tomb attendants standing atop integral rectangular plinths. Each figure presents wearing a shin-length robe covered in faded sancai glaze in orange and yellow hues and clasps their arms in a respectful gesture in front of their chest. Their haunting faces stare forward with beady eyes protruding from beneath gentle lids, and remains of red pigment on the lips of one figure indicate how lifelike these figures would have appeared when first created. The shorter figure is shown wearing a simple cap with a single tab brim rising along the verso, and the taller figure dons a domed cap with a twin-lobed top element. Size (taller figure): 2.6" W x 10.625" H (6.6 cm x 27 cm); (shorter figure): 2.3" W x 9.5" H (5.8 cm x 24.1 cm); 9.875" H (25.1 cm) on included custom stand.

Though these figures only display 2 primary glaze colors - orange and yellow - they would have originally had green glaze hues across their bodies as well. The term "sancai" means "three colors" and is a type of decoration in Chinese pottery using intermingled colors for decoration; it is a signature of the Tang Dynasty. Pieces like these would have been made by using white clay to form the overall shapes, firing them to preserve the forms, then applying glaze. Three major kilns in northern China were responsible for making these pieces, which were designed to go into the tombs of Tang aristocracy.

The Tang Dynasty was a thrilling time in Chinese history, when trade flourished along the Silk Routes and unified China was the richest country on earth. Chang'an (now Xi'an) was the Tang capital, and it was one of the most cosmopolitan cities on earth, filled with foreigners who had travelled to China to trade; the influence of foreigners and talented native Chinese, combined with the economic prosperity brought on by trade and the new religion from India, Buddhism, created a powerful cultural milieu where poetry and other forms of art flourished.

These pieces have been tested using thermoluminescence (TL) analysis and have been found to be ancient and of the period stated.

Provenance: private San Francisco, California, USA collection, acquired 1970s to 2000s

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Display stands not described as included/custom in the item description are for photography purposes only and will not be included with the item upon shipping.

#170545

Repairs to plinths, feet, and ankles of both figures, with light adhesive residue and applied earthen material along break lines. Both pieces have fading and chipping to original glaze pigment, softening to some finer details, a few small spalls, and encrustations across surfaces. Great remains of original glaze throughout. Both figures have 1 TL drill hole beneath base and 1 TL drill hole on back or side of neck. Shorter figure on display stand cannot stand upright unassisted, however taller figure is able to stand unassisted.