Room 10 | China 3000 BC-AD 800 gallery
Discover over 3000 years of Chinese history and culture through surviving artefacts, objects and texts.
The First Emperor's shortlived Qin dynasty (221-206 BC), under which China became a unified state, was followed by the Han dynasty (206 BC-AD 220). The Han rulers established an elaborate and far-reaching system of administration that extended to the manufacture of goods in state workshops with hierarchies of craftsmen and inspectors. Han pictorial art on bronzes, ceramics, lacquers and stone carvings depicts both historical figures and the supernatural. Changes in belief resulted in burials that included models of animals, buildings, and everyday utensils as well as ritual or ceremonial objects.
Basin with animals and birds (EA1956.888)
Three-legged basin, or lian, with tigers and mountains in relief (EA1956.3100)
Boshanlu, or hill censer (EA1956.900)
Boshanlu, or hill censer, surmounted by a bird (EA1956.901)
Finial ornament in the form of a dove (EA1986.10)
Stove model with pots and ear-cups (EA1956.913)
Greenware wine vessel, or hu, with serpent-like decoration (EA1956.926)
Ritual wine vessel, or hu (EA1956.909)
Notice
Objects may have since been removed or replaced from a gallery. Click into an individual object record to confirm whether or not an object is currently on display. Our object location data is usually updated on a monthly basis, so contact the Jameel Study Centre if you are planning to visit the museum to see a particular Eastern Art object.
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