Lot 1. A very large Sichuan pottery figure of a farmer, Eastern Han Dynasty (24-220); 110.5cm (43 2/8in) high. Estimate £ 15,000 - 20,000 (€ 17,000 - 23,000). Unsold. © Bonhams 2001-2018

The standing figure wearing rope-tied sandals and a tight tunic over a shorter garment secured by a belt suspending a short knife and a long sword, holding a spade and a handleless shovel, the face with serene expression below a small squared cap. 

The Property of a Gentleman.

Provenance: An Italian private collection.

Note: Agriculture was considered the foundation of the Han empire, with canals being dug, fields irrigated and new technologies introduced. Families were moved to the empire's periphery to bring new lands under way and all farming lands were owned by nobles, officials and wealthy merchants who grew very powerful.

A related pottery figure of a farmer, Eastern Han dynasty, in the collection of the Sichuan Provincial Museum, Chengdu, is illustrated by J.Rawson, Mysteries of Ancient China, London, 1996, p.211, fig.113.