Hu (vessel)
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Eastern Zhou Dynasty fang hu vessel, 8th century BC. Freer and Sackler Galleries, Washington D.C.
A hu (hú or 壺) is a type of pear-shaped ritual wine bronze vessel from ancient China. They would be placed in the grave of an ancestor as part of ritual banquet in order to ensure the good favor of that ancestor's spirit. During the Shang Dynasty one hu would typically be offered, decorated with relatively simple taotie designs.[1] During the Zhou Dynasty the style of the vessel changed, with taotie being replaced by "heavy, rounded relief figures on a plain ground". [2] During this period the vessels were also usually offered in pairs, and increased dramatically in size over their Shang predecessors. Two hu recovered from the Tomb of Marquis Yi of Zeng were each 39 in (99 cm) high and weighed 529 lb (240 kg) apiece.[3] During the Warring States Period the shape of the vessel was again modified, taking on a more squared appearance.[3][4] This squared version of a hu is referred to as a fāng hú . [5] Another variation was the yu, which added a handle.[5]
Citations
- ^ As in this example, from Christie's auction house, retrieved 11 August 2008
- ^ "Pair of covered ritual wine containers (hu) (China) (1988.20.4ab,5ab)". In Heilbrunn Timeline of Art History. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2000–. (October 2006) Retrieved 11 August 2008
- ^ a b Sing 1989, p. 49
- ^ See this vessel, for instance
- ^ a b Needham and Wang, p. 102
References
- Sing, Yu; Caron Smith (1999). Ringing Thunder- Tomb Treasures from Ancient China. San Diego: San Diego Museum of Art. ISBN 0937108243.
- Joseph Needham, Ling Wang (1954) Science and Civilisation in China Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521652707
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