COCOON-SHAPED JAR WITH CLOUD-SCROLL DESIGN, HAN DYNASTY

The vessel’s plump ovoid body—rising from a low foot to a short neck with a flaring mouth—evokes the silkworm’s cocoon, a form that echoes the central role of sericulture in early China. On the darkened surface, mineral pigments survive in brisk red lines and pale washes, softened by age and burial. Cloud-scrolls (yunwen) drift around the jar, framing a vertical band of lozenges that anchors the design with rhythmic order. Together, these motifs summon an auspicious, otherworldly vision of the celestial realm and the paradise of immortals—an aspiration especially vivid in the Han period under Emperor Wudi (r. 140–87 B.C.), when painted earthenware gave tangible form to dreams of transcendence and celestial travel.

Period : Han dynasty
Type : Earthenware with painted polychrome decoration
Medium : Earthenware
Dimension : 35.0 cm(Height)
Provenance : Acquired in late 1990s from Hongkong dealer
Reference : THE MET Accession Number: 1994.605.31