Ancient treasures unearthed

The Guide gives you a sneak peek at five priceless objects from the treasures of ancient china exhibition that opens next week

Ancient treasures unearthed

The Guide gives you a sneak peek at five priceless objects from the treasures of ancient china exhibition that opens next week

95 priceless objects from ten museums across six provinces in China will be displayed as part of Treasures of Ancient China. Treasures include Terracotta Warriors of the First Emperor, Buddhist statues from the Longmen Grottoes and tri-coloured glazed pottery from the Tang dynasty. Objects made from trademark blue and white porcelain, jade and bronze will also be on display. The collection dates as far back as the Neolithic period or New Stone Age and includes artefacts right up to the 19 the century or the end of dynastic China.
At: Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Vastu Sangrahalaya (formerly Prince of Wales Museum), 159/61 Mahatma Gandhi Road, Fort.
Call: 22844519
From: Friday, 8 April;
Till: Sunday, 5 June
Entry: Rs 30 (for adults); Rs 5 (for children between 5 and 12)

Four-storey barn, eastern han pottery
Lavish burials were a popular practice during the Han dynasty (206 BC - 220 CE). It was believed that the deceased would live in an afterworld, and were thus buried with their belongings. As part of the practice, miniature models of the deceased were also included in the tomb. This model is a funerary object representing a four-storey barn with a rectangular courtyard. The first floor is without a door and is strictly guarded.

Tomb Guardian, Tang Dynasty, Glazed Pottery
The custom of burying tomb guardians started during the Western Jin dynasty. The earlyu00a0 models were typically depicted in stiff crouching postures. The style changed to become more animated during the high Tang period with the guardians' upper body turned upright, arms stretched straight, flowing mane and ferocious expressions. The figure, a funerary object, has a wide mouth revealing tusks and an upward triangular mane on the head. The figure crouches on a pedestal.

Bronze gui vessel, western zhou period
The use of bronze started with weapons. Gui vessels, such as this one, were typically used to store grain. The shape and embellishments on the vessel indicate that it was from the Shang (1600 BC to 1046) and Zhou (1045 BC to 256 BC) dynastic periods. This vessel represented nobility, as gauged from an intaglio inscription on the inner base of the vessel, indicating the people who commissioned the vessel and their ancestors.

Blue and white jar, ming porcelain
The appearance of porcelain marked a new era in the history of Chinese pottery. The central motif on the jar is that of the god of Longevity (Shou), depicted sitting on a rock with cranes, deer and 22 human figures around him. The characters on the bottom of the jar indicate it was made during the Jiajing reign (1522 - 1566) of the Ming Dynasty. Fu (Good Fortune) Lu (Prosperity) Shou (Longevity) is a Taoist concept that has its roots in the Ming Dynasty, and is a term used to define the attributes of a good life.

Bronze vessel, animal face design, shang period
Gu is a bronze wine vessel, with both the mouth and the base in the shape of a trumpet. The Gu vessel was mainly popular during the Shang and early Western Zhou periods. Its outer surface is decorated with banana leaves and there is a thunder pattern in the upper portion. In the middle part and lower portions are two groups of animal face designs..