Details
The tower is made in two sections, each consisting of two storeys, the lower section modeled with a courtyard with floriform ornaments at the corners of the roofs, the balconies supporting various figures including a dwarf, the upper section with square balconies and figures standing guard holding crossbows, all below a tiled roof surmounted by a bird, covered overall with a dark green glaze.

The result of Oxford Authentication Ltd. thermoluminescence test no. PH 1/339 is consistent with the dating of this lot.

43 3/4 in. (111 cm.) high


Provenance
Sing's Antique Gallery, Hong Kong, early 1990s.
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Lot Essay

Compare two Han-dynasty green-glazed towers with similar architectural elements and similar figures, one illustrated in Sekai toji zenshu, Tokyo, 1955, vol. 8, pl. 12, and the other illustrated in Zhongguo gudai bingqi tuji (Ancient Chinese Weapons - A Collection of Pictures), Beijing, 1990, p. 146, fig. 6-67. For a discussion of the types of towers and their uses see J. Baker, the catalogue for the exhibition, Seeking Immortality: Chinese Tomb Sculpture from the Schloss Collection, The Bower Museum of Cultural Art, Santa Ana, California, 6 October 1996 - 16 March 1997, p. 24.

The result of Oxford Authentication Ltd. thermoluminescence test no. PH 1/339 is consistent with the dating of this lot.

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