Currently not on view
Hollow tomb brick,
206 BCE–9 CE
Chinese
Western Han dynasty, 206 BCE–9 CE
y1979-93
As early as the Western Han period (206 b.c.–a.d. 9), hollow bricks were used for the construction of tombs in the area of present-day Henan province in eastern China. They were used to build walls, columns, floors, and ceilings for small and medium-sized tombs, providing a more durable structure than perishable wood. The bricks, made from gray clay, were formed in large molds. While the surface of each brick was still leather-hard, designs were imprinted into its face using raised relief stamps.The stamped designs often illustrate paragons of filial piety and loyalty, historical and mythological stories, and scenes of feasting, homage, and processions.
Information
Title
Hollow tomb brick
Dates
206 BCE–9 CE
Medium
Earthenware with stamped designs
Dimensions
image: 59.5 x 116.5 cm. (23 7/16 x 45 7/8 in.)
Credit Line
Museum purchase, anonymous gift
Object Number
y1979-93
Place Made
Asia, China
Culture
Period
Type
Materials
Techniques
Subject
–1979 Sotheby Parke-Bernet auction 4296, lot 90 or 128 (New York, NY), sold to R.H Ellsworth, Ltd. for the Princeton University Art Museum, 1979.
- "Acquisitions of the Art Museum 1979," Record of the Art Museum, Princeton University 39, no. 1/2 (1980): p. 40-63., p. 61, p. 62 (illus), illus. p. 197
- Allen Rosenbaum and Francis F. Jones, Selections from The Art Museum, Princeton University, (Princeton, NJ: The Art Museum, Princeton University, 1986), p. 68 (illus.)
