
Juliette Hammer
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Sold for £10,240 inc. premium
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Please note this Lot is to be sold at No Reserve. 本拍品不設底價
漢 鉛綠釉陶塔
Provenance:
Acquired in Hong Kong, 16 April 1996
來源:
獲得於香港,1996年4月16日
The result of Oxford Authentication Ltd. thermoluminescence test no.C200d23, dated 20 October 2000, is consistent with the dating of this lot.
本拍品經牛津熱釋光檢測,編號C200d23(2000年10月20日),結果與其斷代相符
Pottery models of watchtowers such as this are among the most distinctive forms of Han dynasty funerary wares, often exhibiting notable regional variations; this example originates from Henan Province. See a similar green-glazed tower, Eastern Han dynasty, in the Henan Provincial Museum, illustrated by Liu Liang-yu, A Survey of Chinese Ceramics, Early Wares: Prehistory to Tenth Century, Taipei, 1991, p.128.
In contrast to Tang dynasty tomb figures, which frequently emphasised status and display, Han funerary models possess a more immediate, domestic quality. They suggest that the afterlife was conceived as a direct continuation of everyday life, requiring the same furnishings and animals as the deceased enjoyed in life: pigs, dogs, chickens, goats, farm buildings, and, as here, watchtowers. These large watchtowers, though typically shown with defensive features, likely represent more than purely military structures, reflecting instead multi-storey fortified dwellings characteristic of the Han period. Compare also with another green-glazed 'watchtower', Han dynasty, illustrated in The Tsui Museum of Art: Chinese Ceramics, vol.I, Hong Kong, 1993, no.31.
See a green-glazed red pottery model of a watchtower, Han dynasty, which was sold at Bonhams New York, 17 March 2025, lot 81.