Han+Images



=**Painted Han Tomb Guardians**= Second century BC, Western Han dynasty Height: 48 cm, 51 cm Excavated at the tomb of the King of Chu at Beidongshan in 1986 Xuzhou Museum, Jiangsu Province

These figures wear a V-neck robe fastened on the right, a belt, a sword or knife with a ring handle on the left chest and a pair of shoes with upward-curving toes. They have various kinds of moustaches and their fists are joined at the waist on the right presumably to hold a long weapon such as a halberd. Traces of painted wood remain inside the hands. A hook is sometimes added to the belt and a silk ribbon is tied in a knot at the waist. Attached to the ribbon is a rectangular container containing a seal carved with the characters // Langzhong //. The post of // Langzhong // was already in existence in the Spring and Autumn period (770–476 bc). During the early Western Han, a // Langzhong // served not only the emperor, but also vassals, since the system of the court in nobles’ fiefdoms followed that of the capital. The post could be either of civil or military ranking, serving in a palace and being close to the emperor or king.

=Earthenware cavalryman on horseback with inscription of ‘feiji’= Second century BC, Western Han dynasty Height: 59 cm Excavated at Shizishan in 1984 Xuzhou Museum, Jiangsu Province

This sculpture of a cavalryman riding on a horse was one of the most extraordinary finds from the earthenware army at Shizishan. The horse was moulded in three parts: the head, body and four legs.The cavalryman wears two high-collared robes that fasten on the right.The lower section of the figure was made as part of the horse’s body and his legs were inserted after being produced separately. An inscription of two Chinese characters, feiji, meaning speedy horse, was found on the horse’s abdomen.



=Han Terracotta Warriors=

Less than 70 years after the fall of Qin, Jing Di (157-141 B.C.), the fifth Emperor of the Han Dynasty, also was sent to the afterlife accompanied by a terracotta army. In March 1990, workers building a highway uncovered pits containing pottery soldiers sculpted one-third of life-size; these soldier images depicted a further step toward a merely symbolic sacrifice.

Little is known about Jing Di. He reigned over a period of peace and prosperity, relative to Qin. His main achievement was consolidating power in a central government and extending the unification of China. He encouraged agriculture and initiated a civil service. The Han dynasty, founded in 206 B.C, concentrated on agriculture and diplomacy rather than warfare. The Han rulers fortified the Silk Road tradeway between China and the western world. As a result, the Han imperial court was wealthy, lavish, and riddled with intrigue. Han emperors were considered divine intermediaries between heaven and the people.

Appropriately, the soldiers guarding a Han emperor into the next life were exquisitely sculpted and garbed in silk uniforms.



=Han Watchtower=

The ruins of Han dynasty watchtower made of rammed earth at Dunhauan, Gansu province, the eastern edge of the Silk Road.



=Paragons Of Filial Piety=

Chinese painted artwork on a lacquered basketwork box of legendary experts of the Confucian ideal of filial piety. It was excavated from an Eastern Han tomb of what was the Chinese Lelang Commandery in what is now North Korea. Each of the figures are about 5 cm tall. The photograph is black-and-white, so the various lacquer-based colors of paint do not show.