id:			381858
accession number:	2020.178.1
share license status:	CC0
url:			https://clevelandart.org/art/2020.178.1
updated:		2023-01-23 22:52:52.041000

Owl-shaped Jar, 206 BC–AD 9. China, Henan province, Western Han dynasty (206 BC–AD 9). Amber-brown glazed low-fired pottery; overall: 19 x 11.7 x 13.6 cm (7 1/2 x 4 5/8 x 5 3/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Nancy F. and Joseph P. Keithley Collection Gift 2020.178.1

title:				Owl-shaped Jar
title in original language:	
series:				
series in original language:	
creation date:			206 BC–AD 9
creation date earliest:		-206
creation date latest:		9
current location:		
creditline:			Nancy F. and Joseph P. Keithley Collection Gift
copyright:			

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culture:	China, Henan province, Western Han dynasty (206 BC–AD 9)
technique:	Amber-brown glazed low-fired pottery
department:	Chinese Art
collection:	China - Han Dynasty
type:		Ceramic
find spot:	
catalogue raisonne: 

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CREATORS

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measurements: Overall: 19 x 11.7 x 13.6 cm (7 1/2 x 4 5/8 x 5 3/8 in.)
state of the work:	
edition of the work: 	

support materials:


inscriptions:

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CURRENT EXHIBITIONS

	title:		Impressionism to Modernism: The Keithley Collection
	opening date:   2022-09-11T04:00:00
	<i>Impressionism to Modernism: The Keithley Collection</i>. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (September 11, 2022-January 8, 2023).

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LEGACY EXHIBITIONS

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PROVENANCE

	Purchased by the parents of Yves Bonan, by descent to Yves Bonan, Venice, Italy
	date: 1970s–2008
	footnotes: 	
	citations: 	


	(K.Y. Fine Art, Hong Kong, sold to Mr. and Mrs. Joseph P. Keithley)
	date: 2008
	footnotes: 	
	citations: 	


	Nancy F. and Joseph P. Keithley, Cleveland, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art
	date: 2008–2020
	footnotes: 	
	citations: 	


	The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
	date: 2020–
	footnotes: 	
	citations: 	


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fun fact:
The jar cover is modeled in the shape of an owl's head.

digital description:


wall description:
Pottery vessels in the shape of owls were made since Neolithic times and throughout the Bronze age. These jars in the form of vigilant owls may have provided a tomb occupant with grain in the afterlife. However, the meaning of these mysterious birds and the association of the owl motif with burial sites in China is not fully understood.
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RELATED WORKS

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CITATIONS

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IMAGES

web:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/2020.178.1/2020.178.1_web.jpg
print:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/2020.178.1/2020.178.1_print.jpg
full:	https://openaccess-cdn.clevelandart.org/2020.178.1/2020.178.1_full.tif