Accession Number
2008/2.280

Title
Screen on Plinth with Finials

Artist(s)
Chinese

Artist Nationality
Chinese (culture or style)

Object Creation Date
1368-1644

Medium & Support
glazed pottery

Dimensions
8 1/2 in. x 7 1/2 in. x 2 11/16 in. ( 21.6 cm x 19 cm x 6.8 cm )

Credit Line
Gift of Jiu-Hwa Lo Upshur

Subject matter
A sancai  (三彩) ("three-color ware") mingqi (冥器) ("funerary goods") miniature standing screen of the Ming dynasty (1368-1644).

This type of earthenware figure was mass produced in low-temperature fired kilns to be buried with the deceased as a type mingqi, or “bright object.”  Mingqi were made to supply the tomb occupant with everything they would need for the afterlife; they reflect the lifestyle and time in which the deceased lived.  During the Ming dynasty, these were manufactured with a three-color glaze palette similar to sancai ware of the Tang dynasty, but could include new colors such as aubergine and turquoise in addition to the green, amber, cream, and cobalt typically associated with sancai.

Since the Qin dynasty (221 - 206 BCE), ceramic figures have been used to replace human sacrifice in burial practices as mingqi as a way to provide for the deceased.  Mingqi could include houses, towers, gates, granaries, livestock pens, chicken coops, wells, cooking stoves, storage vessels, dishes, incense burners, and lamps.  Figures could include horses, dogs, anthropomorphic animals and people, such as officials, guardians, servants, and entertainers. By the Han dynasty, they also included representations of common people engaged in the activities that consumed their daily lives, such a cooking. The tombs in southern provinces of Sichuan and Shaanxi have revealed a vast array of figures in playful and humorous poses.  As grave goods, these mingqi included everything one would need to ensure a comfortable transition into the afterlife. The number of ceramic mingqi items in a tomb could reach numbers of a few to several hundred objects.

Physical Description
An earthenware miniature standing screen, mimicking wooden construction, with two vertical support beams and three cross beams on a platform with support brackets at the base.  There are finials at the top on both sides, and it is glazed in green and amber.

Primary Object Classification
Ceramic

Primary Object Type
funerary sculpture

Additional Object Classification(s)
Ritual Object

Collection Area
Asian

Rights
If you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit http://umma.umich.edu/request-image for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form. Keywords
Sancai (Chinese ceramics style)
ceramic (material)
earthenware
grave goods
screens (furniture)
stoneware (pottery)
three-color ware (Chinese ware)