Pottery figure of an officer

China, Western Han dynasty, c. 180-140 BC

Height: 24 inches, 61 cm

The unusual head covering indicates that this figure is meant to represent a military official. The head gear is reminiscent of that seen on some of the figures from the tomb of the first emperor of China in Xian. The joined hands of this figure conceal a cylindrical hole, indicating that the figure once held a staff which was probably made of wood. The large size and the quality of modelling indicate that it was intended for the tomb of a high ranking person. The figure bears a strong resemblance to two examples from a group of attendants which were excavated in 1966 from a tomb at Renjiapo, an eastern suburb of Xian, in Shaanxi Province. They are illustrated in The Quest for Eternity, Chinese Ceramic Sculptures from the Peoples Republic of China and were exhibited at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art 1987 (pp. 73 and 107). In the accompanying text, the authors state that the Renjiapo pits are associated with the tomb of Empress Dou (died 135 BC), who was the wife of Emperor Wen Di (reigned 180-157 BC).

Oxford thermoluminescence analysis report, no. C199s73