Catalog: Antiques (378)

Lovely pottery small lead glazed stove from the Eastern Han Dynasty (202 BCE – 220 CE). Minor fritting and a couple of chips on the upper corners, but overall, in very good condition for a two thousand year old piece. There are still random traces of the silver patina on the surface. I scraped off a small section the surface layer and a beautiful silver patina is revealed (see enlargement #5), up to the buyer of they want to clean the whole piece...

Very rare Warring States jar with ribbed pattern. I’ve seen these in publications, but this is the first one I have seen in person. There is one chip on the mouthrim, as can be seen in enlargements, but otherwise in excellent condition. Very sharply carved with decorated lugs. H: 13cm/5.1in and D: 16cm/6.2in.

Eclectic collection of 11 ground slate stone “arrowheads” circa 3000 BCE-1900 BCE. The artifacts correspond to the Longshan Culture or a concurrent culture. See enlargements for scale and condition.

Very fine, unusually small Tang image of a courtier, excellent condition with complete original pigments. Lovely face with calm and dignified expression. H: 17cm/6.8in

Fine and rare large conch shell pendant from Central Thailand Bronze Age, Ban Chiang or Lopburi cultures circa 300BCE-500CE. Superb condition with minimal calcification may still be worn! The spiral is one ancient humans most universal motifs in adornment, it is understandable why people were drawn to this. Included is a museum quality perspex stand (total H: 14.5cm/5.6in). Maximum D: 7.7cm/3in and W: 3.4cm/1.5in...

Rare early “si zhi” (four straight lines) style inkstone carved from an old fired brick. The characters on the brick are in an archaic style, no longer in use today. The square shaped flat bottomed inkstone with sloping grinding surface did not become popular until the Song Dynasty, so it is possible this was made into a inkstone long after it was a brick. Chinese are very fond of creating ink stones out of “found objects” such as roof tiles etc...

Rare pair of three legged, brown glazed pottery barbeque grills. The Han Dynasty was unique in making replicas for cooking in the afterlife. These two pieces are in excellent condition with very minor fritting and no damage; please note that there is still a bit of the original soil it was excavated in stuck to the surface, with a bit of patience this can be cleaned off. The food items on the grill are cicadas and fish...

Green lead glazed oil lamp or candle stand from the Han Dynasty. In excellent condition with no damage, there are still traces of the classic silver patina as may be seen in enlargements. H: 13.5cm/5.3in and D: 10.5cm/4.2in.

Very rare Tang Dynasty (618CE to 907CE) terra cotta wall tile depicting the face of a Zhemushou, a fierce guardian earth spirit meant to ward off evil. It is a trapezoidal shape with much of original red and black pigments intact. Some loss to the lower lip (please see enlargements). Lower W: 19cm/7.8in, upper W: 16cm/6.1in and H: 20cm/9in.

Special Offer: Marked down from $250- now $200. Green mottled glazed censer with classic little bears as legs, some loss of glaze in the back noted in enlargements and a few chips on the mouth rim and legs. D: 21cm/8.2in and H: 13.2cm/5.2in.

Unusual pottery bowl with hand molded snake handle. I cannot find any pieces similar in style to this although the reddish clay and heavy potting are reminiscent of Hongshan pottery. This came out of China and has a good petrichor and water absorption on the base, very old- at least 2000 to 3000 years old but probably older. W: 14cm/5.5in and H: 12cm/4.7in.

Lovely Neolithic jar with a single lug from the Qijia or Siwa Cultures circa 1500BCE...

Strand of ancient Afghani glass beads, circa Roman era. These are original beads (not re-carved bangles or glass vessel fragments). Some are decorated with gold leaf, others exhibit dichroism. Traces of calcification. A total of 27 beads (note 3 are broken). Total length: 50cm/19.8cm- note last enlargement for scale- 17 grams. Free shipping.

Neolithic/Bronze Age reddish clay, pottery jar from an unknown culture. I acquired this in a group of Chinese Neolithic pottery pieces but I can’t find any references to this being Chinese. I tend to think this from Thailand or some other Southeast Asian culture. Low fired with very good near invisible restoration. If you know what this is, drop me a line and let me know. D: 12cm/4.7in and H: 8.5cm/3.6in.

Rare image of a Qilin Chinese "unicorn" with stunning deep aquamarine Qingbai glaze. This is a fragment of a much larger piece, possibly a finial off a censer. H: 9.5cm/3.9in, W: 7cm/2.8in x 4.5cm/1.8in. The sculpture is in excellent condition, there is a film of hardpacked soil in the crevices which can be (see enlargements), this can be removed with a small blade with a bit of effort, soaking it in water for a week or so will help. I am leaving it on as it speaks to the age of this piece...

Very rare pair of pottery bears. The meaning of bears of during Han Dynasty is somewhat enigmatic, as they are “everywhere” in their material culture i.e., bronze, jade and pottery, but what they signify remains unexplained. Usually they are depicted in a friendly almost cute Winnie the Pooh (ish) fashion, lacking in ferocity like dragons and tigers. Only during the Han did they reach such ubiquity. Both have an amber colored vitreous glaze and appeared to be mostly hand carved...

Rare scholar’s item, Yue type glazed brushwasher in the shape of an alms bowl, circa 500-600CE from a southern kiln. This has two hairline cracks running off the rim (please see enlargements). Fired with a dense dark gray clay. D: 6.8cm/3.4in and H: 4.3cm/1.6in. Free shipping.

Special Offer: “Fixer Upper”- Han ceramic well with dragon head roof, and classic lead green glaze and silver patina. This is broken into three pieces and would need to be repaired (I would recommend two part epoxy) please note that in the cover image it is just being held together with gravity. I would prefer to sell “as is” but can offer a repair but cannot guarantee it will arrive in one piece. H: 40cm/15.8in.