Archaic bronze ritual beaker (Zun)

China, late Shang or early Western Zhou dynasty, 11th century BC

Height: 9 1/4 inches, 23.5 cm
Width of mouth: 7 1/2 inches, 19 cm

The zun shape, first seen in the second half of the Anyang phase, is a development of the slender gu beaker and was used in rituals to serve wine. This well-proportioned zun is distinguished by a particularly striking design of taotie masks and a beautiful patina. A zun of similar proportions and with equally bold decoration is in the collection of Hans Popper (1). Further comparable zun are in the Arthur M. Sackler collection (2), the Shaanxi Provincial Museum (3), and an example of somewhat squatter proportions is in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art (4).

1 See: The Hans Popper Collection of Oriental Art by René-Yvon Lefebvre d’Argencé (Japan 1973) no 4, pp. 18-19
2 See: Ancient Chinese Bronzes from the Arthur M. Sackler Collections, Vol. IIB, by Jessica Rawson (Washington 1990) no. 81, pp. 554-5
3 ibid., p. 555
4 See: Ancient Ritual Bronzes of China by George Kuwayama (Los Angeles 1976) no. 19, p. 39