SOLD Antique Chinese, Shang Dynasty (14th -11th century .BC.) Earthenware 'Li' Tripod Food-Cooking Vessel, with flaring mouth, bulbous Body Resting on Three Hollow Feet, decorated with cord pattern design.

The 'Li' is a uniquely Chinese cooking vessel, which when filled with water and covered with a perforated vessel, was used for steaming.

MEASUREMENTS: Height: 16,5 cm (6 ½ in). Width: 17,3 cm (6 ¾ in).

CONDITION: Some cracks and old repairs commensurate with age as one would expect from an over 3000 years old ceramic.

REFERENCES: Similar tripod from the Royal Ontario Museum collection is published in the book: Chinese Ceramics: From the Paleolithic Period through the Qing Dynasty by Li Zhiyan Page 101 illustration. 2.7.

Similar vessels are also in the following collections:

The Metropolitan Museum of Art Gift of Dr. Benjamin Pasamanick and Dr. Hilda Knobloch, 1972

Accession Number:

1972.275.4

University of East Anglia, Norfolk, UK / Robert and Lisa Sainsbury Collection.

Indianapolis Museum of Art

Art Gallery of New South Wales, Sydney Australia Accession number

231.1983

Willets, W., 'Foundations of Chinese Art' London, Thames and Hudson, 1965. pg.38, fig. 13.

Valenstein, S., 'A Handbook of Chinese Ceramics' New York, The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1975, collection plate no. 3 (pg.14).

Pang, M.A., 'An album of Chinese Art' Melbourne, National Gallery of Victoria, 1983, fig. 14.

Asian Art Dept., AGNSW, 21 September 1983.

This rare Chinese ancient ceramic came from an old Canadian collection of oriental art, together with other Chinese antiques. The tripod is accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity issued by the Hong Kong Art Craft Merchants Association, date 19 05 1994. With description: A black Pottery Ting Neolithic age 2500 B.C. to 3500 B.C.

However in our opinion this is a Shang Dynasty (11th -14th century .BC.) 'Li' Tripod Food-Cooking Vessel. Description provided by Hong Kong Art Craft Merchants Association is wrong

The buyer will be provided with the mentioned certificate along with a certificate of authenticity issued by our company.

SOLD Antique Chinese, Shang Dynasty (14th -11th century .BC.) Earthenware 'Li' Tripod Vessel