An archaic bronze ritual wine vessel (Hu), Late Shang dynasty

Acquired in Hong Kong, circa 2000.

With its powerful form, elegant curved body and prominent decoration, this finely cast large ritual hu vessel is an iconic legacy of the late Shang dynasty. The main body is unadorned, framed by an intricately cast band of taotie masks below the slightly waisted neck applied with prominent tubular handles, each cast with additional taotie masks. The foot is cast with a band of stylised bird masks.

A similar hu excavated in 1976 in the West of Gaocheng county is illustrated in Hebeisheng Chutu Wenwu Xuanji (Selected cultural relics unearthed in the province of Hebei), Beijing, 1980 pl. 56. Another example is preserved in the Idemitsu Museum of Arts, Tokyo, illustrated in Ancient Chinese Arts in the Idemitsu Museum, Tokyo, 1989, pl. 80. See also a hu of slightly smaller size dated to the middle Anyang period, illustrated in Ritual Bronzes in the National Palace Museum Collection, Taipei, 1998, pp. 372-3, no. 62. 

A closely related archaic bronze hu vessel of similar size was sold in these rooms, 15th June 1982, lot 108. See also a smaller example, illustrated in R.W. Bagley, Shang Ritual Bronzes in the Arthur M. Sackler Collections, The Arthur M. Sackler Foundation, 1987, pl. 59, and sold at Christie's New York, 18th March 2009, lot 202.