Ming/Qing Jade Horse, 14th-19th century CE
Jade
length 9.5 cm
length 3 3/4 in
length 3 3/4 in
EL.0060
The Ming Dynasty was an imperial dynasty in China from 1368 until 1644, following the Yuan Dynasty. It was founded by the Hongwu Emperor after a period of unrest in...
The Ming Dynasty was an imperial dynasty in China from 1368 until 1644, following the Yuan Dynasty. It was founded by the Hongwu Emperor after a period of unrest in which there were several rebel factions vying for power. Hongwu introduced a building programme, including defensive walls, palaces, and government buildings, and strengthened the military. During the Ming Dynasty, the country was highly organised under a provincial administration system. Many art forms flourished, including literature, painting, poetry, music, and opera, and the novel form became popularised. This artwork is from the Ming or the Qing dynasty, but it may be intended as an imitation of the style of the Han Dynasty (202 BCE-9 CE and 25-220 CE).
This small sculpture depicts a horse lying down, with its four legs curled underneath it. Its front left leg is raised slightly, with the hoof placed on the ground, as though it might be about to get up. Its tail curves round to the right, and it is wearing a simple saddle. A thin raised line down the back of its neck denotes its mane. The round cheeks and long nose show close observation of horses, and its eyes are open wide. Its mouth is also open, showing its long teeth. The colour of this sculpture changes along its length; it is a dark mottled greenish brown at the back, but along the horse’s neck it gradually lightens to the orange brown colour seen in the face.
Jade is a highly valued material within Chinese artistic culture, and has been used for thousands of years for ritual objects, ceremonial weapons, small figurines, and dress ornaments. Until the 18th century, all jade used in China was nephrite (one of the two varieties of jade, the other being jadeite). It was mainly sourced from the riverbeds of Yarkand and Hotan, in the present-day autonomous region of Xinjiang. The material was prized for its beautiful, almost translucent, quality and the variety of colours in which it could be found. Objects made from jade would have been valuable because of their beauty as well as the effort required to make them; jade is too hard to be carved or cut with metal tools, and it would have been necessary to drill or saw it.
This small sculpture depicts a horse lying down, with its four legs curled underneath it. Its front left leg is raised slightly, with the hoof placed on the ground, as though it might be about to get up. Its tail curves round to the right, and it is wearing a simple saddle. A thin raised line down the back of its neck denotes its mane. The round cheeks and long nose show close observation of horses, and its eyes are open wide. Its mouth is also open, showing its long teeth. The colour of this sculpture changes along its length; it is a dark mottled greenish brown at the back, but along the horse’s neck it gradually lightens to the orange brown colour seen in the face.
Jade is a highly valued material within Chinese artistic culture, and has been used for thousands of years for ritual objects, ceremonial weapons, small figurines, and dress ornaments. Until the 18th century, all jade used in China was nephrite (one of the two varieties of jade, the other being jadeite). It was mainly sourced from the riverbeds of Yarkand and Hotan, in the present-day autonomous region of Xinjiang. The material was prized for its beautiful, almost translucent, quality and the variety of colours in which it could be found. Objects made from jade would have been valuable because of their beauty as well as the effort required to make them; jade is too hard to be carved or cut with metal tools, and it would have been necessary to drill or saw it.