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lian The Pusf Becorutes Preserut

Tbe artifacts tlrat make up ttt)o recent major exhibitions of the Qin and Han dynasties remind us of tbe linked bistorical bumanity in our quotidian experience. Tbe exbibitions empbasize

iust bottt releuant real lsuman contact is in truly understanding otber people omd cultures.

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Earthenware dancing figurine, Western Han (206 BC - AD 8), H.45 cm, W.42 cm. Excavated from the Tomb of King of at Tuolanshan, (2000).

54 ASIAN ART NEWS voume2T Number 3 2OlZ ost Vie\vefs \\'ho attenclecl Sl-raanxi province. In short, the exhibi- nlsccnt ancl energetic socill ertvironntcnt tlrc lclut ivt'11' r'orttprelrcnsivt. ti(n pr'()\'okecl unexpc'ctecl possibilities irr n'hich Chinese people n,ele cor-ning exl.rihition. Age c1l' F.ntpires. fbr' \Westelncls to c()nlc t() tenls rritl'r tl're into tlteir'on,r-r, Chittese Art o.l' the Qitt € histolicll basis lncl cultr,rral essimiletion N()t ()nh: n'as it a ple'lsLre to see Hcrtt D1'rtcrsties (221 BC- AD of these <;bjects. Rather than clismiss these beatrtiftrlh' clisplayecl carthenr,vare 220),ttvere ostensibly movecl ir-r lln Llnsus- ing these sorks as xrt-f()r-xl'trj sakc. atr- ()l)jects. l>ut also t<> take n()tice of thcir pectirlg way. The sheer elegancc cntanlrt- cliences appcalc'cl to gr.rsp some of tlte conclitkrr-r. 'fhe vust majolity of nolks in ir-rg fi<>r-r-r these multivalent rvolks significcl corrplexitv ancl clensifi' of tirm lrn this shon coulcl bc callecl objects that hacl the plesence of cver')rcla]' lif'e ls trn intc- engle <>f i.ision thel' hacl lulcly enc()Lul- n()t sccn the light of clay for centulies gral part of a pelennial uncl ernelgent cr,rl- terccl pleviousll'. LLntil the late 1970s rvlten a lnole irggrcs tltt'e. Not onll' 11'91. r,isitr'ical ink el' expeftly l'estol'ecl elu'then\\'ilfe fbrms r.irttrally ur-rr-rsecl. Anothel object s'olthy paintings, r-nany of the ultifucts coming of statuary ancl blilliantly contoLrrecl of r-rotc rr'lrs l ll'onze r-nirror- fr<;nt thc into vien. clr,rling the ulchleological cligs anirral figtrlines. inclLrcling pigs. horses, \y'esteln Han that suggestccl un exempla- in thc 1970s hacl not l)een touchecl or l'relcl clogs, ancl roosters, fl'on-r the \(/estcln Han ly feltile pcriocl essocietccl s'ith the pr-o- sincc the cleys of the Qin ancl Han cly- periocl (206 BC to AD 9). Moreovet'. one cluctior-r of ptrlpc>sefr-rlly clesignccl hoLrsc nasties in u'hicl-r they servecl a variety of coulcl vien' lif'e-size guarcls ancl civil of'- holcl goocls. These cliverse objccts gave fr-rnctions b<>th in the ckmestic encl pul>lic ficials, also n-rolclecl lncl carvecl in ealth- e"'iclence' of an important culturc- in thc sphcres of evelyclay lif-e. This exl.ribi- enwzrre fl'or.n the earliel Qin (227-207 ruriclst of gl'owth ancl of positive change, a tion r.r.'oulcl heve been en entirely clif-fer- BC) excavltecl as recently as 1999-2000 ctrltule in w'hich the comfirrts of lif'e s,'er-e ent shoq, hacl it been ckrnc for,rl clecacles fl'om the Qinshi Hr,rangcli Mausole'ut"n in irnportxnt but also l'e'velxtory signs of a ag<>. At thxt time. r-rrost of thc objects on

Above left:Civil Official, Qin dynasty (221-206 BC), earthenware, H. 184 cm. Excavaled in 2000, pit K0006, mausoleum complex of Qin Shihuangdi (d.210 BC), Lintong, Shaanxi Province. Above center,' Kneel lng Archer, Q in dyna sty (221-206 BC), earthenware, H122 cm. Excavated in 1 977, pit no.2, mausoleu m complex of Qin Shihuangdi (d.210 BC), Lintong, Shaanxi Province. Above right:Unarmored General, Qin dynasty (221-206 BC), earthenware, H.197 cm. Excavated in 1978, pit no.1, mausoleum complex ofQin Shihuangdi (d.210 BC), Lintong, Shaanxi Province. Photographs: Courtesy Qin Shihuangdi lvlausoleum Site Museum. Lintono

Yoltne 27 Number 3 2OlZ ASIAN ART NEWS 55 Dog, Eastern Handynasty(AD25-220), earthenware, H.42.5cm. Unearthed in 1987, Dongguan, Nanyang, Henan Province. Photograph: Courtesy Henan Museum, .

Head Ornament, Warring States period (47 5-221 BC), gold, turquoise, and carnelian, Diam. 0.3-0.6 cm. Excavated in 2008-9, tomb no.16, Majiayuan, Zhangjiachuan, Gansu Province. Photograph: Courtesy Gansu Provincial institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology, Lanzhou.

Modef of a Multistory House, Eastern (AD 25-220),earthenware with pigment, H.175 cm, L. 87 cm. Excavated in 1988, Jiaozuo, Henan Province. Photograph: Courtesy Henan Museum, Zhengzhou.

Pillow in the Shape of a Twin-Headed Bird, Eastern Han dynasty (AD 25-220), silkjin (warp-faced compound plainweave), 10x46x 16cm. Excavated in 1959, tomb no. 1, Niya, Mrnfeng, Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region. Photograph: CourtesyXin.iiang UyghurAutonomous Region Museum, Urumqi.

Tripod Food Container (Ding) with Gloud Wine Container (Zhong) with Interlacing Gowry Container with Bulls and Mounted Pattern, Western Han dynasty (206 BC-AD 9), 2nd Dragons, Western Han dynasty (206 BC - AD 9), Rider, Western Han dynasty (206 BC AD 9), century BC, - lacqueroverwood, H.25.6 cm, Diam. ol parcel-giltand silvered bronze, H. 59.5 cm, max. Diam. bronze, H. 50.2 cm, Diam. 25 cm. Excavated in mouth '1 21.2 cm. Excavated in 1972, tomb no. (Lady 37 cm. Excavated in 1968, tomb no. 1 (Liu Sheng, 1956, tomb no. 10, Shizhaishan, Jinning, Yunnan Dai, d. ca. 168 BC), Mawangdui, Changsha, Hunan d.113 BC), Mancheng, Province. Photograph: Province. Photograph: Courtesy Yunnan Provincial Province. Photograph: Courtesy Hunan Provincial Courtesy Hebei Provincial Museum, Shijiazhuang. Museum, Kunming. Museum, Changsha.

56 ASIAN ART NEWS tlolume 27 Number 3 2OlZ clisl'rirtr ncle still lrtrliecl in ntucl c()ntinUecl thc intl-:roItllr-rt societltl :rncl r'llrv rruiting to lrc rrnr:rllltecl. luncl gor cr-nr.rrcntlrl chunges clr.rling givrn thc lcuul protoco] irtvolvccl tltc lcigr-r of Qin Shi Hr,teng ut the in Irr.ginninv titi rcccnt lrrthuc<>, ()Lllsrt ()f the eel'lirr Qin clVnustr'. logiclrl r entr-ir-c. 'l'lrtrs. ltinlllv itrrntissi<>rr nlrnv of tltc csscnti:rl ir-r gr':rntccl t:ts in the lete l9-0s lrncl grcclicnts of sctting fil'tlt u ntun- ILrs r'otrlinrrcrl into lltc 21s1 r.c|rtu lgclrblc (()ltstitLlti()ltxl lrgrccllcllt rv s hcrr it is still in tltr, ltrocrss ol .trll( )tls , 'lhr'i.rjs rro1ll1l ,, )nlirtuL. huppe nir.rv. tlrrorrsh tltc IIun rLlttil its cncl it-r Al) 120. 'I hus. orrc f ecl in tltt .lgL'rtl lirtrpit'es. e ncn stubilitl ilt (lhinll. IrLor.n lr \\'Jr:rt hlpprnccl clrrlins nrilit:rrv l)ersllcctivc. this is shon n this lirul Ituncllccl-r'clrr in tlrc riort-r-t lintcst()lte lrrntctl ltr-tci pclrocl Iretlrntc tlte lirtrnclltti()lt ()f thc- ir'on hclntcts (.sholrftail usccl tlrt' lristorr'. ctrltrrlc. lrncl ltolitics <>f bt thc utilit:lr\' (excuvutccl rn (lhinu. Qin us lit' klcxv Chinl tocllrr'. 1998). ()nc nrisltt rll-gr,rc thesc r-e1t- TIrt Qin officirrllr lrcsins in 22 I Il(. rcscrlt thc Iisc ol ()lte c()untt'\ its rtncl cncls in 20(r IJ(]. rr ltilc tltc IIun ltn eltcln:rtirr to sgcrlrl ls ir-r thc c()ntinr.rr(l f |o|t tltlrt rlittc Uutil .\ l) pr-evi<>us \\':rrr-ing Stlrtt-s Terracottafigurineplayingase(ancientChineseplucked lteliocl 220 us.r"tc <>f thc lrr_rgcst tlr r.r;rsr ir,s (.r-t-2ll llc). lt nas thc lise of i. cr,i,,rs trisr<,rr n,,,.:,i:;, ;l;.. :iLli'l#::llil,?;lj.".t_?35;3?5I1f;:tiHi"??fsH,P?;[ lr clor.rrinunt lrncl colrcLent firr-cc ot'clcllv chltnges nlrclc clr.rling tltc at Tuolan Mountain in Xuzhou (2000). throlLgh<>trt Asilt. Qir-t. ltlinlu'ilv trnclet' thc fict'cc. \'ct stll fLLr-rctiorr ()l' llrist()cfllts lutcl luncknr ner.s. llut thr nrilitulv itcc()urcnlcltrs t (]in (urrtil lrilizirtg ltlt ol' Shi Htrung 2lO tlttr-clx givin{r Irint clircct uclntin jstnltivc nclc onlv onc e xltnrltlc <>f this cohcrcncc lJ(- ) ll <>ulcl hlrlc :t lustins int|xtct throuult- (()lttl.()l ()\.cr ntt l)rusilntr\.. rr Iro cor.rr :ts nlrtlc clelrr in lr sccortcl illl)()rtllltt e\- ()tlt 'l'lris tht IIlttl clvt.l:tstv lltltt lirll

\'ottlcl irlclr.tclc tllt' rrrrificlttion of (lltinl t I ltoprrlltior-t. This. in ltrrn. ltrrx iclt-cl irill li t l I a r t t i t.1'.'li't't r.s t t t't'.s r t t Lt c I Jt r t t r /.1' r r rt s l.)' irtililrllv ltl conclr-rcr-in.q thL- tvcllitnccl :rcr.rss ttncl contr.ol or cr u llrlror lirrt.t nct.- firtut Xtr.:l.tort.r rrt tlrc Chinu InstitrLtc ir-r Zlt<>tt clvr-t:tstr'(l0 t6 2r6 Il(.) lirllosccl lty css:try t() ltuilcl tltc (lre:rt \\:rll. L 1t61 tlrc lon er' trlunllrttllt. CLrr:rtccl ltv thc- Institutc l)Ltttiltg lttt tt-tcl to thc itrcleltr:nclcnt lr.rlc o1' l,1t1tc:rr,r.. tlr:rtlt. lris sorr q lls irr lilc tn ltlso lircr-rsccl ()lt the Qin Shi Iltuttrg 1-r-rr-tltr:r' it-tstigutccl over-1lt nc\t li)ur vc:tr.s oPrnecl l]rc tloor. e r rlt clut s hilc gir inc sltccitrl lttcnti()n t() ll c()llllll()ll cLlrl-tl1('\' ltt'tcl lrcs:tll r,,orli firr lr nrilituIt torrlt irt Nhich u Chil licr,r- tlre (.hinrsc ricri o1'ut:rtcriitl l)lestigr in ()lt tltc (()nstl'uLti()lt of the (]t'ttrt \\'ull tcnlutt t()()h ovcr. lrncl cstlrlrlisltccl thc Hun tlrc rrf-tcr-lifr. Thcrefirlc. tlte nlrjor *rrlli in riitlt thc intcntiolt ol lrr

Ornament with Two Dancers, Western Han dynasty (206 BC - AD 9), gilt bronze, 12 x Earthenware rFeiji" cavalryman figurine, Western Han 1 8.5 cm. Excavated in 1 956, tomb no.1 3, Shizhaishan. Jinning, Yunnan Province. Photograph: (206 BC AD 8), H.59 cm, 1.65 cm. Excavated from the pits of the Courtesy Yunnan Provincial l\rluseum, Kunming. terracotta warriors at Shizishan. Xuzhou.

\.lrfrr-r:r ; t 1tt t 27 3 )ri l ASIAN ART NEWS 57 Above:Jade burial suit with gold thread' Western Han (206 BC-AD 8),4,248 piecesof lade discs, 1,576 g gotd thread, tength: 176 cm, (shoutder) width 68 cm. Excavated from the tomb of the King of chu at shizishan, 1994-1995. Below: Delail.

thirt the cle-r'r:esccl incliviclull. thc hli.q rl' prohibitccl Itcnc'cfirrth. I Ict'rcc. tltc scet- Cl:ttt. is rtot tlrll. \ct thc intlllct of sccit-ru c itt o1' Ihcsc ltrc-ci<>rrs llclc rcntr-runts. o1'rr r-r-c thr firlnt linir-rg srLltine fictrre is clif- Flerthcrrl urc is frrrgilc. lrr-rt clr.rr.a- ficult t<> igltolc. Tlrc +.2 rl.i 1tl:rclrLes srl cr-r Itlr'. I ltt'r't'1, r|t . Il)r, f3trIirtt . r'!'(llIir'\' (:lr'(. into thc suit ule- grcr:n jucle- ancl. lirnr thcir If thct'e :rlc 1'l'otcctccl us lr1'lltulcntlv thct lul)l)c1lr1rn('c. in ;llistinc conclitiorr. n cre eftcr I)eins nteclc uncl instrrllecl ir-r the tonrlr <>f thc I{ir-rc ()f Chu (206 I]C r() AI) fi ). l c()11)i)1rris()n. thcrc is sintillrr' tlrcl els<> hlcl the capebilitr <>f c-r-rciur-ir-rg clisplel rt the \letr<>polii:rn cr- for nrore tltiln t\\'o ntillent'rilr ils titc\' \\.crc hilritint 'l'lre tltc- \\'csrrr-n in tlrc 2lst ccntur\'. 1tur1tosc 0l' tltc Hltn 1-rt'r'iocl. Hcrc thc nuntltct' ligurincs s us ln o-firlcl: tr> offt'r- r'ontfirrt ol juclc pluclucs is cor-rsiclcr:rblv tcs cr' luncl pr-otcttior-r lrncl lo pr'oviclc tltc jol of (':r(lt :l: irttlir itlrr.rl J)l:r(JU(. irl)l)(.;tr'5 \ i\ r. rr lt rr rlr I cntcrtll i n ntL,ltt. pri nt:r r-i lv th rou{.all ilrll lrrr-gcr tlltn tltut t>f tltc liiriq of'(.l.trr. nrusic lncl cluntc. firl thc rlecrrrserl. Sontr: cvcn thr>r,rqh its rllt cltriclltltlc- tltcv ulc ol thc ntost lrnlrrlilrble scullttrrlr: in- r,rnifirnl ir-r scllc. Fr<>r.r.r u lturelv cxter-i<>r. t lrrclecl in lroth tlrt ,l,qe of lirttltin's ..rncl l)crsl)ccti|r. tlte- r'onclitiot-r rrr lr ing nornct.r rn clt'epccl sleevcs llre utterlv photr>ulephic l)efsl)cctivc \\'itlt thc iii 1,q ht pnotizine. Fluc lr of thcir nrovcrnt-nts l)e- rtl Cl.ttr. \l<>rc th:rr-r lilicll tltc cliffcr-t-nt'- \\'cstcrn I Iun lter-iocl. rvltich pulti:rlh rrc- cr>rttts clcltt ltncl florrr ltrtr' ltoint ol' r'icrr. cs betsecn ()nc e-\tcri()f ltncl tltc othc-r- cr>trnts liu' thcir stvlistic consislcnt r'. lrl Thc sulrtlc. r'ct clnrntetic lrenrlir-ru to thc ucrc clue t() r'cst()l1lti()n. Fol t-runtltlc. tltt: tlt<>trsh thc t>r'igin of lhc j:rclc lrtrriul suit rieht :rncl lcft in tltc lirr-nt of ur-r "S cr-u'r'c glevc c>l I{ing of Chu hacl bcen scvclelr .qocs blcl< t() thc Zh()r-l clvr-tlrstt. Anotitcl cltr-r'ics lr ccrtairt ntegic. ri Iticlt incliclrtcs u vuncllrlizccl lrv erlrvc rolrl.lcls lll-t-\i()r.ls t() l"rossiblc clrl'felcncc in thcir cor-rclitiorr ccrt:rilr clnl)iltl)\' encl eckrntiotr fol thc cle- retlicvc the q()lcl thlc:rcl tltut bor-rr-rcl tltc tlltv rcflcct thut Igc-thcr'.'l'ltc clis effirrclccl .qrcuter lr.rrurv irr tlteir jeclc srLits ()r.ltstretchr(l h:rncls r>f tltc \'<>r.r.Lrrt Nhint rlrcr-r nrrrsic. -l-hc thc tlior.rgh ulthcilrcl. c\citvlrti()lr. Chincsc ntrn.rc fol t]tc- issuccl lrv Finrpct'or \\'en o1 \\'ci in Al) l'cs()uirtcs visLrellr s ithin the stillness j:rrlc suit is .)'l.r'irr ( litclellv trunslrrtccl 2ff (tlro reurs uftcr the lull of tltc Hun). ltncl conrplcte silcnce. This is llls() trLle ()f lus jecle cirgc ). lJoth sr,rits ulc front thc thc truclitron of fr.rnctrlt )'ir.r'ia n orrlcl lte those pleving tlte s incl instrr,rntcr-rts. llut it

Burial Suit of Dou Wan, Western Han dynasty (206 BC-AD 9). jade (nephrite) with gold wire,L.172 cm. Excavated in 1968, tomb no.2 (Dou Wan), Manchenq Hebei Province. Photograph: Courtesy Hebei Provincial Museum, Shijiazhuang.

58 ASIAN ART NEWS is the clancers that continlle to l-nes- rnerize the senses. In rlany ways the two exhi- bitions at The Metlopolitan Museur-r-r of Art ancl the China Institute over- lap ancl cornplernent one another. It is not vely often thitt cpi(' s:lllJs on art ancl civilization. specifically Eastern civilization, are clelivelecl to n-rajor exl-ribition institlltlons nowa- clays. The emphasis is ter-npolar- ily elsewhele. Still, tl-rere is r-r-uch to learn :rncl more that neecls to lte lerrerlberecl. Ol-rjects of the kincl representecl in these exl-riltitions ale cssentixl to nrelrofy. lts rtrerttoly is essential to history. AsIcontemplatealalge lrronze zbcntg (wine container), in- scribecl on one side chtr zao (wine of the King of Cl.u,r), ancl stucly tl-re bancl in the center, the wicle lip at the top, the ringecl hanclles on either' side, ancl tl-re sturcly base. I l-recorre au,zrre of people living then as we clo today, though from a cliff'elent place ancl a clifl'elent time, a time in history wl-ren the ureaning of clig- nity still matterecl in the coulse of people meeting toElether. It is I'ithin the context of sr.rch exhiltitions that we may lecall t1-re necessity of lealn- ing to unclerstancl one zrnothel' in a way that the Intefnet has, temporar'- ily, nacle us fbrget. A

Notes: 7. Age o.f Etlxpires. Cbinese Art ol' tbe Qin E Han D_llzasties (221 BC - AD 220), on view at The Metlopolitan Museum in New Yolk, organizecl by Dr'. Zhixin Jason Sr,rn, Blooke Russell Astor CLlrzltol' of , assistecl by Pengliang Lu, Henly A. Kissinger Cr-rratori:rl Fellow, both in Tl.re Met's Depaltr-nent of Asian Art. 2. Dreatns on tbe Kings: A.fctcle Strit .fbr Etentit-y: Tr"easttres oJ'the Hart cl-yrmsQ fr"om Xttzbotl, at the China Institute, New York, May 25 - Novenber 72, 2077, culatecl by Li Yincle. Director Er-neritus of the Xuzhou Mnseum, ancl clirect- ecl by $Tillow Weilan Hai, clirector ol Clrine Instilrrte Crrllely. Tlre cx- hibition will travel to tl-re Nelson- Atkins Mlrsenm of Art in Kansas City, Missouli. frorrr Decer-nber 2017 tl-rrough Aplil 201f3.

Robert C. Morgau is tbe Neu' )'ctrk Inscriptions from the Stele of Mount Yi (front), date of stele: (960-1279), inkon paper, Eclitor r1f'Asittn Art News cutdWorlcl 152.4 x 79.4 cm. Calligraphy after Xu Xuan (916-991). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Seymour and Rogers Sculpture News. Fund, 1977 (1977.375.7a, b). Photograph: Courtesy The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Yoime 27 Number 3, 2Ol Z ASIAN ART NEWS 59