East Asia, China, Han Dynasty, ca. 206 BCE to 220 CE. A fantastic mold made pottery effigy of a rhinoceroses-pig hybrid creature, with horns protruding from the neck and shoulders and a lengthy tail! This mythical creature was a placed in a tomb as a mingqi or auspicious guardian for the deceased for protection in the afterlife. The animal is dynamic as if charging, the hoofed feet are cloven like a bovine, and the horns inspired by rhinoceroses. While some rhinoceroses in Chinese art are very realistic, this unusual beast suggests the artist relied on stories and descriptions and may have never seen one in person. Several species of rhinos lived in China, the Sumatran had 2 horns and ranged as far north as Mongolia. During the Han Dynasty when this pottery effigy was made, the rhino was only south of the Yangtze River and near extinction due to habitat loss and overhunting for the magical bones and horns. Size: 10" L x 3.5" W x 8.75" H (25.4 cm x 8.9 cm x 22.2 cm)

The Han Dynasty was a period of wealth and stability for China, and the burial places of their rulers reflected this prosperity - inside of burial mounds, hundreds and sometimes thousands of pottery figures were placed, recreating the daily life of the emperor’s court or a noble person's world. These pottery creations were known as mingqi or "spirit utensils" or "vessels for ghosts." Mingqi were any of a variety of objects specifically created for interment in the tombs of elite individuals to provide for the afterlife, and included animals, furniture, food, and people as servants. In life rhinoceroses were special and auspicious animals, their bodies ground into medicines and potions, while pigs and boars were symbols of wealth and sources of meat. A hybrid of these 2 animals reflects the interest in the spirit world in which such fantastical creatures were believed to reside.

For a similar example please see the Metropolitan Museum of Art's website, accession number: 68.149.15, and the Ackland Art Museum's website, object number: 2018.15.2.

This piece has been tested using thermoluminescence (TL) analysis and has been found to be ancient and of the period stated. A full printed and bound report will accompany the item upon purchase.

Provenance: Dodge collection, acquired 2017. Ex Moore collection, Denver, Colorado before 1990.

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#122058

Professionally repaired and small areas of restoration. Tail reattached and loss to tip. Stable hair line fissure across head. Earthen and mineral deposits on surface and interior. Restoration to horns. Tl hole in front left foot and second Tl hole under the jaw. Old probe holes on neck, body, and feet.