#vase design

The dou (斗) measuring vessel. The way to measure grain by volume rather than by weight goes back at least to the Warring States. In different periods, attempts were made to standardize these values somehow, and even so, they were extremely variable, depending on the province and dynasty.

This square vessel is presumably from the Qing era. The design is inspired by the Tang poem depicting a fisherman who fell asleep under the moon, leaving his boat floating on the water.

Cat nest on the table

I was always amazed by the elaborate surrealism in ancient bronze. The examples are not limited to this famous Square Humanoid Ding (人面銅方鼎). My friend calls it "Shang era TV-set."

Animalistic motifs are common in household items and especially ritual items of the Shang and Zhou eras. However, such Janus-like vessels were rare even in those good old days.

Hunan Provincial Museum (湖南省博物館) collection.