Ancient Chinese Tang Dynasty Sancai Pottery Camel Groom Figure - 706 AD

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Ancient Chinese Tang Dynasty Sancai Pottery Camel Groom Figure - 706 AD:
$2325.00

Awell provenanced, ancient Chinese sancai glazed terracotta camel groomdating to the Tang Dynasty, between 706 - 755 AD.

An Oxford Authentication Thermoluminescence test accompanies this piece, which scientifically dates it to the Tang dynasty.

This wonderful piece is a beautiful example of Tang ming-ch\'i artistic styles, displaying a high degree of individuality and emotional expression, the essence of sheng dong (living movement). The figure, representing a male servant or groom, isshownwearing a long Persian style coat with wide, greenlapels. The robe, popular with both foreigners and Chinese alike during this period,isdecorated with a rich amber and green sancai glaze.The strong,lifelike featurescombine a sense of both monumentality and realistic detail,whilst the drapery of the garment is beautifully modelled to assist in defining the structure of the body underneath. Thelively figure is shown with his right arm raised upwards, likely gripping thereigns of the camel figure that would have accompanied him.

Thispiece depicts a camelgroom or merchant\'s servant. He would have led Bactriancamelsladen with goods, travelling alongthe treacherous deserts of the Silk Route. These servants were mostly foreigners, andthis figure appears to depict a Turkic individual, likely from one of the nomadictribes to China\'s northwest.It was during the Tang Dynasty that theSilk Route reached its golden age,and theChinese empire welcomed foreign cultures from all across the known world.The cosmopolitan nature of Tang life is revealed in the varied array of foreigners depicted in ming-ch\'i art.

This beautiful and vibrant style, known as sancai (three colours), is widely renowned for its use of rich glazes and colours. Sancaiwasproduced foronly a short period of time during the Tang Dynasty,under a lavish patronage that encouraged artistic sophistication. Political decline after the An Lushan Rebellion(755-763 AD) was accompanied by a deterioration of artistic vigour. As such, the small window under whichsancai pieces such as thiswere producedrepresents thevery highest standardsof theming-ch\'i artistic style.

For a very similar piece, possibly produced from the same moulds, currently on display at the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, please see the following link.

Height: 12inches.

Condition:Right forearm re-attached. Good preservation of original pigment, overall excellent condition for a genuine Tang ceramic.

Provenance:

From the collection of Mr. and Mrs. Ezekiel Schloss, acquired 1950\'s-1990\'s.

Ezekiel Schloss is one of the most famous names in ancient Chinese ming-chi (terracotta figure) art. Together with his wife Lillian, he was a prolific collector, well respected authority and author of the major publication \"Ancient Chinese ceramic sculpture from Han through T\'ang\". Schloss arrived in the US from Latvia in 1940. He was an accomplished cartoonist, working for many years at the New York times. The Schloss collection is rare in that it truly represents an educated collection of art; Schloss was immersed in Chinese ming-chi art and only collectedbeautiful examples of specific types, as well as the unusual, the charming and the rare.

Please note: This is a genuine ancient figure. This piece is offered for sale with a very lowreserve to promote our extensive inventory of antiquities and ancient coins, which you will find at the following link: combine shipping costs on all orders!

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