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Image of Gallery in South Kensington
On display at V&A South Kensington
Ceramics, Room 145

Figure

700-750 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This magnificent tomb figure is proof of the passion the Chinese have for beautiful pure-bred horses from the West. The intelligent and alert turn of the horse's head and the energy of its well-muscled body is testament to the immense skill of the Tang potter. Emperors of the Tang dynasty (618-907) kept their horses in special stables and parks that occupied large tracts of land around the Tang capital Chang'an (present-day Xian in Shaanxi province). Important tombs held models of these desirable animals.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Earthenware, with coloured lead glazes
Brief description
Tomb figure of a horse, earthenware with coloured lead glazes, 700-750, Tang dynasty, Chinese.
Physical description
The horse stands erect with head turned slightly to the left, on a small, thinly potted base. The bristling mane and tail are coloured a deep amber yellow, the cloth covered saddle is green, the parts of the under-saddle in dark brown and mottled green, brown and white, the harness and other applied, stamped trappings in dark brown. The body of the horse is in a straw-white glaze, unevenly mottled and tinged with the other colours.
Dimensions
  • Maximum height: 76.0cm
  • Width: 84.0cm
  • Depth: 28.0cm
Styles
Gallery label
Tomb figure of a horse Northern China Tang dynasty, 700–800 Large ceramic horses were placed in tombs from the time of the first emperor of united China, Qin Shihuangdi (died 210 bc). By the Tang period, the horses were shown with their saddle and trappings in place, ready for mounting. The brown glaze running down the neck may relate to the ‘blood-sweating’ horses imported from the Ferghana valley, now in Uzbekistan. Earthenware, moulded in sections and assembled, details finished by hand, splashed with coloured (sancai) lead glazes Museum no. C.50-1964 Mrs Robert Solomon Gift(September 2009)
Credit line
Solomon Gift
Subjects depicted
Summary
This magnificent tomb figure is proof of the passion the Chinese have for beautiful pure-bred horses from the West. The intelligent and alert turn of the horse's head and the energy of its well-muscled body is testament to the immense skill of the Tang potter. Emperors of the Tang dynasty (618-907) kept their horses in special stables and parks that occupied large tracts of land around the Tang capital Chang'an (present-day Xian in Shaanxi province). Important tombs held models of these desirable animals.
Bibliographic reference
Liefkes, Reino and Hilary Young (eds.) Masterpieces of World Ceramics in the Victoria and Albert Museum. London: V&A Publishing, 2008, pp. 32.
Collection
Accession number
C.50-1964

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Record createdFebruary 9, 2003
Record URL
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