VCM

Horse figure
Figura konia: MT-DW-174

Download print

image1

Why this is a
Masterpiece

This figure of a horse made in fired clay is a very realistic sculpture. All details are made with great precision. The horse is standing, his long neck is bent down, and there is a saddle on its trunk. The so-called three colors glaze (“sancai”) is an excellent decoration.

History of the Object: China’s funerary objects of the Tang Dynasty mirror the dynasty’s economic prosperity and military might, as well as peace and political stability. Legendary animal figures supposedly to protect tomb inhabitants were no longer used and in their place came tri-color glazed pottery figurines of horses, camels and other real animals, which represent the peak of ancient Chinese pottery sculptural art. Production of such figurines calls for temperature ranging from 800 to 1,100 degrees C. to ensure that the colors of the glaze are bright but not transparent. Yellow, green and brown are the main colors, hence the “tri-color glazed pottery”. The figure of the horse from Torun’s collection was supposedly put in a tomb, but there is no evidence of where.

Map Of Museums

See the Google map

Type: Decorative Art
Materials: Ceramic: Fired clay, glaze (so-called “sancai”)
Measurements: 38, 1 x 12, 9 cm
Creator name: Unknown
Creator date: Unknown
Where it was made: China
Geography: China
Time period: AD 7th century ~ AD 10th century
Creation date: 7th Century - 10th Century; Tang Dynasty; 618 – 907
Function: Decorative/Funeral
Acquisition: This object derives from a large collection of the famous Polish collector, Tadeusz Wierzejski (1892 – 1974) who handed down this ceramic to the Museum in 1968.
Copyright
Acknowledgements
Owner: District Museum, Torun
Museum: District Museum, Torun
Credit line