A good straw-coloured glazed amphora vase

Description:

China, Tang dynasty
H. 41,7 cm
The sinuous handles are shaped as dragon heads with appliqué detailing pressed against the flared Öopening attached to the fitted neck, which is surrounded by raised ribbonwork, all supported by an inverted pear-shaped body and flat base.
From an important South German private collection, collected since the 1960s
Tang amphorae in this extravagant form with freely modelled dragon heads are among the most characteristic vessels äßforms of the early Tang dynasty and reflect the international spirit of the time. Their shape was inspired by Hellenistic glass vases from the Römish Empire, whose style ütravelled to China via the Silk Road, where it was modified by the addition of dragon pots. One of the rare surviving mixed glass vessels of this form, which is based on Greek pottery vessels, is the mummified amphora found in Olbia on the Black Sea (now Ukraine) and dated to the second half of the 2nd century AD. Today it is exhibited in the Altes Museum, Berlin, Germany, under the number 30219, 254 - Glaze partially with wear or corroded, very slightly chipped