Model of a Building
Artist/maker unknown, Chinese
Geography:
Made in Zhangde, Henan Province, China, Asia
Date:
2nd centuryMedium:
Earthenware with incised decoration and traces of painted decorationDimensions:
Height: 48 inches (121.9 cm)Curatorial Department:
East Asian ArtObject Location:
1925-53-9a--fCredit Line:
Gift of Charles H. Ludington from the George Crofts Collection, 1925
Made in Zhangde, Henan Province, China, Asia
Date:
2nd centuryMedium:
Earthenware with incised decoration and traces of painted decorationDimensions:
Height: 48 inches (121.9 cm)Curatorial Department:
East Asian ArtObject Location:
Currently not on view
Accession Number:1925-53-9a--fCredit Line:
Gift of Charles H. Ludington from the George Crofts Collection, 1925
Social Tags [?]
architecture [x] china [x] chinese building [x] clay [x] mingqi [x] mingqi house [x]
Philadelphia Museum of Art: Handbook of the CollectionsSince no actual buildings from the Western Han dynasty have survived, models such as this, which were placed in tombs to accompany the deceased in the afterlife, provide vital material evidence of early Chinese architecture. The model clearly illustrates the basic Chinese building scheme used for nearly two thousand years: post and crossbeam construction, bracketing to help support the weight of the beams, and tiled roofs with projecting eaves. The building probably represents the main house of a large residential complex. The lower story would have been used for storage and the upper floors for living quarters, with a watchtower at the top. The various sections of the model were shaped from molds in a fine-bodied gray clay and show traces of paint. Felice Fischer, from Philadelphia Museum of Art: Handbook of the Collections (1995), p. 26.
