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Image courtesy of Asian Art Museum, San Francisco

San Francisco museum seeks names for ancient rhino art

Catherine Saunders-Watson
Catherine Saunders-Watson

Image courtesy of Asian Art Museum, San Francisco
Image courtesy of Asian Art Museum, San Francisco
SAN FRANCISCO (AP) – What do you call a 3,000-year-old rhino?

No, it’s not a joke; it’s a contest.

The Asian Art Museum in San Francisco is inviting the public to submit nicknames for an ancient Chinese bronze vessel in the shape of a rhinoceros.

The 12-inch-high ritual vessel may once have held wine or food. It is particularly rare because few Chinese vessels made during the Bronze Age (approx. 1500-221 BC) were in the form of animals, and most of those featured surface decorations of other animals, like tigers or dragons.

The museum says it’s a masterpiece and should get the term of endearment it deserves.

People can submit one-word nicknames for the rhino by Jan. 1. Entry forms are on the museum’s website: www.asianart.org.

Museum staff will choose three names, awarding prizes that include a museum gift card and a plush rhino.

The public will then vote for a final winner, which will be announced in February.

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Auction Central News contributed to this report.

ADDITIONAL IMAGE OF NOTE

Views of the rhino vessel from three angles. Image courtesy of Asian Art Museum, San Francisco
Views of the rhino vessel from three angles. Image courtesy of Asian Art Museum, San Francisco