Collection record · Objects & craft
Wine Vessel (Hu)
The collection record classifies this work as metalwork. It is dated c. 1000–900 BCE. Recorded culture or place: China, Western Zhou dynasty (c. 1046–771 BCE).
Explore the object recordOBJECT RECORD
A closer look at the details.
- Museum title
- Wine Vessel (Hu)
- Date
- c. 1000–900 BCE
- Culture / origin
- China, Western Zhou dynasty (c. 1046–771 BCE)
- Materials and technique
- bronze
- Dimensions
- Overall: 46.1 cm (18 1/8 in.); without cover: 41.7 cm (16 7/16 in.)
- Artist / maker
- Not specified by the museum
- Museum
- The Cleveland Museum of Art
- Accession number
- 1944.61
FROM THE MUSEUM
In the museum’s words
The following description is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art’s original English record.
This tall, slender bronze wine vessel, called a hu, has three bands of ornamentation: one above the foot, one around the neck, and one on the cover. Stylized birds or phoenixes are in the band around the neck, while the band on the cover and foot feature geometric dragons. The dragon and the phoenix may represent yin and yang and would be equally appropriate on a bronze of either secular or religious purposes.
When inverted, the cover forms a cup. It likely held liquids like wine at festive banquets or religious ceremonies. The cylindrical "handles" at the neck band suggest that the vessel was carried by a cord.
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Text and image sources
The Cleveland Museum of Art · Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund · CC0
The summary is based on public collection data. Refer to the museum’s latest record for the title, date and attribution.
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