A Painted Pottery Model of a Mingqi Terracotta Caparisoned Horse, with TL test – China – Northern Wei Dynasty (386-534 )

Fired in antiquity.
China, Perfect condition

Our Guarantee: The above item is guarantee to be of the time period and condition as described, has been exported legally and is legal to buy and sell under all international lows to cultural patrimony.

Outstanding pottery “mingqi” representing a painted pottery model of a caparisoned horse.
Grey earthenware coated with white slip and remains of orange, black, green and red pigment.

Northern Wei Dynasty (386-534),
High 31 cm, Wide 30 cm. Original pigments!

The relationship between China and horses dates back to Neolithic times and the first domestication of the animal is believed to have started in the 13th century BC. Recognising the speed and endurance of Western horses, these were brought in to breed with the Mongolian, smaller variety native to China and were widely used in warfare, hunting and in the aristocratic pastime of polo. Similar to their Tang Dynasty counterparts, Northern Wei ceramic horse figurines were placed in tombs with their owners, serving a ceremonial purpose.

Provenance: very important and old private Dutch collection, Mr. W. V., The Netherlands

– A Certificate of Authenticity from Becker Antiques (specialist in Chinese pottery since 1969, Amsterdam) will accompany the item.

– All items legal to buy/sell under The Netherlands covering cultural patrimony, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.

Well modelled standing foursquare on a rectangular base, the slender curved head with crisply flared nostrils and picked ears. The arched neck painted in red with a scalloped black border to indicate the mane, the trappings including crisply detailed bridle, chest collar applied with florette – molded tufts, and crouper that continues under the tail, the saddle draped with a long-flared cloth carved with fringe, with traces of white, black, red, brown and orange pigment.

Compare very similar N. Wei horse, high 27 cm., sold by Christie’s New York. Other two very similar examples from the Aurelius Parenti collection of Chinese Ceramic Sculpture, sold by Christie’s New York, 3 June, 1988, lot 186 and lot 187 (sold again form Christie’s New York from the Schloss Collection, 21st March, 2000, lot 259.

This finely modeled horse is amongst the best examples of this period. In general, horses of the Northern Wei period are characterized by their stiff legs, widely projecting trapezoid saddles, powerfully arched necks, broad chests and relatively small heads. After Emperor Xiao Wendi’s decree that moved the capital to Luoyang in 494 AD, the style of tomb sculptures altered abruptly, influenced by developments in painting in the southern courts. A comparable but smaller caparisoned pottery horse from the collection of Mr. and Mrs. Ezekiel Schloss, showing the typical equine representation of the second phase of the Northern Wei period, was included in the exhibition Art of the Six Dynasties in the China Institute in 1975. Another Northern Wei pottery caparisoned horse of similar design is in the collection of the Rijksmuseum. In its unusual striding motion, the horse is comparable to an example in the collection of David W. Dewey.

The results of thermoluminescence tests are consistent with the dating of this object, Northern Wei Dynasty ((ca. 1630 years old).

Also a Pre-dose test has been performed: Pre-dose testing confirms old firing without any kind of artificial x-ray treatments.

Important information:
The seller guarantees that he is entitled to ship this lot.
It will be professionally packed and safely send in a wooden crate by FedEx.

Buyers are responsible for import regulation and restrictions of their own country