Bronze ritual pouring vessel, he, in the form of a winged animal, China, Eastern Zhou, Warring States period, 475 - 221 BC. Photo courtesy Ben Janssens Oriental Art Ltd.

Length: 12 inches, 30.5 cm. Height: 11 ½ inches, 29.2 cm

This rare and impressive pouring vessel, he, was used in ritual ceremonies for heating liquids such as water or beer. Although many extant he have animalistic elements in their decorative scheme – mostly in the spout and the handle – it is extremely rare to find examples cast as a complete animal, showing four legs and a winged body. It is generally believed in academia that this type of winged he represents the cultural syncretism between China and Western Asia, since it resembles the legendary half-lion, half-eagle griffin. Only a few similar examples have been published; the closest comparable example entered the collection of the Palace Museum, Beijing in 1946, and is dated to the early Warring States period. Although almost identical, the spout of the latter is fashioned in the form of a bird, and has a tiny, hinged lid. A very similar example with a beak-shaped spout and gold-and-silver inlaid around the eyes and the neck, dated to the late Warring States period, is in the collection of the Shanghai Museum. Another closely related animal he, excavated from a site near the Jing river in Gansu province in 1962, is now in the Gansu Provincial Museum. This vessel, with dragon-shaped handle attached to the head of the spout and tail with a cover, is dated to the mid-Warring States period.

Provenance: Private collection, Europe.

Ben Janssens Oriental Art Ltd (stand 202) at TEFAF 2014. 14-23 march 2014 - http://www.tefaf.com/