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Goblet

A work made of bronze.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • A work made of bronze.

Date:

Shang dynasty ( about 1600–1046 BC ), 13th/12th century BC

Artist:

China

About this artwork

For nobility of the Shang dynasty, divine goodwill was enlisted and repaid with ritual offerings of food and drink. This vessel, which would have been placed over fire to heat sacrificial wine, displays the taut profile and precise surface decoration and distinguishes the finest bronzes commissioned for this purpose. Its surface decoration is intricately executed in several levels of relief. Two tiers of monster masks, each formed of hooks and spirals around a pair of staring eyes, encircle the flared bowl. Elongated versions of these masks, which may be read as paired serpents, descend the legs, while a snub-nosed bovine head with sculpted horns crowns the strap-handle. This intriguing imagery, set off a background of fine, squared spirals, reappears in endless variations on Shang bronzes, but eludes modern interpretation.

Status

On View, Gallery 131

Department

Arts of Asia

Title

Goblet

Place

China (Artist's nationality:)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

Made 1600 BCE–1050 BCE

Medium

Bronze

Dimensions

27.2 × 17 cm (10 3/4 × 6 11/16 in.); Diam.: 17 cm (6 11/16 in.)

Credit Line

Lucy Maud Buckingham Collection

Reference Number

1946.4

IIIF Manifest  The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

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https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/109230/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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