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Lot 219
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Han Dynasty Grey Pottery Cocoon Jar - Silkworm Form Vessel
Han Dynasty Grey Pottery Cocoon Jar - Silkworm Form Vessel
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East Asia, China, Han Dynasty, ca. 206 BCE – 220 CE. A broad, ovoid vessel rising on a splayed ring foot to a short, ringed neck and everted lipped rim, its silhouette unmistakably that of the silkworm cocoon for which this distinctive form is named. The grey earthenware body is burnished to a soft pewter tone and articulated by vertical groups of incised parallel lines that band the swelling shoulders and belly at regular intervals, lending taut structural rhythm to an otherwise plump and generous profile. Known in Chinese as a jianxinghu, the cocoon jar emerged in the late Warring States period and flourished under the Qin and Han, when it was produced as a funerary substitute for more costly bronze vessels and interred to hold grain, wine, or other provisions for the tomb occupant's journey through the afterlife. The cocoon shape itself carries layered meaning: a reference to sericulture, the silk industry that underwrote Han prosperity and the Silk Road trade, and perhaps a meditation on transformation and rebirth, the chrysalis as metaphor for the soul's passage. Wheel-thrown in two halves and luted at the equator, the form requires considerable potter's skill, and its survival in such complete state speaks to the careful sealing of the tomb environment. The restrained linear ornament and weighty volumetric presence together exemplify the sober, monumental aesthetic of Han ceramic art. Size: 10.8" W x 10" H x 7.3" D (27.4 cm W x 25.4 cm H x 18.5 cm D).

Provenance: private Colorado, USA collection; ex-Lee Cannaday, Ojai, California, USA; ex-Tom Accatino estate, Palm Springs, California, USA

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Item # 203205

  • Condition: Very Good. Some chips to rim and foot, as well as scratches and abrasions in ares, commensurate with age. Otherwise, intact and very nice with scattered earthen deposits.

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by Artemis Fine Arts
June 25, 2026 9:00 AM MDT
686 S. Taylor Avenue
Suite 108
Louisville, CO, US 80027

Artemis Fine Arts

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Bid Increments
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$0 $299 $25
$300 $999 $50
$1,000 $1,999 $100
$2,000 $4,999 $250
$5,000 $9,999 $500
$10,000 $19,999 $1,000
$20,000 $49,999 $2,500
$50,000 $99,999 $5,000
$100,000 $199,999 $10,000
$200,000 + $20,000