ARTS IN ANCIENT GREECE

In around 450 B.C., the Athenian general Pericles tried to consolidate his power by using public money, the dues
paid to Athens by its allies in the Delian League coalition, to support the city-state’s artists and thinkers. Most of all,
Pericles paid artisans to build temples and other public buildings in the city of Athens. He reasoned that this way he
could win the support of the Athenian people by doling out plenty of construction jobs; at the same time, by building
public monuments so grand that people would come from far and wide to see them, he could increase Athens’
prestige as well as his own.

THE ARCHITECTURE OF CLASSICAL GREECE

The most noteworthy result of Pericles’ public-works campaign was the magnificent Parthenon, a temple in honor of
the city’s patron goddess Athena. The architects Iktinos and Kallikrates and the sculptor Pheidias began work on the
temple in the middle of the 5th century B.C. The Parthenon was built atop the Acropolis, a natural pedestal made of
rock that was the site of the earliest settlements in Athens, and Pericles invited other people to build there as well: In
437 B.C., for example, the architect Mnesikles started to build a grand gateway known as the Propylaia at its western
end, and at the end of the century, artisans added a smaller temple for Athena—this one in honor of her role as the
goddess of victory, Athena Nike—along with one for Athena and Erechtheus, an Athenian king. Still, the Parthenon
remained the site’s main attraction.

TEMPLE ARCHITECTURE
With its rectangular stone platform, front and back porches
(the pronaos and the opisthodomos) and rows of columns,
the Parthenon was a commanding example of Greek temple
architecture. Typically, the people of ancient Greece did not
worship inside their temples as we do today. Instead, the
interior room (the naos or the cella) was relatively small,
housing just a statue of the deity the temple was built to
honor. Worshippers gathered outside, entering only to bring
offerings to the statue.

The temples of classical Greece all shared the same general

form: Rows of columns supporting a horizontal entablature
(a kind of decorative molding) and a triangular roof. At each end of the roof, above the entablature, was a triangular
space known as the pediment, into which sculptors squeezed elaborate scenes. On the Parthenon, for example, the
pediment sculptures show the birth of Athena on one end and a battle between Athena and Poseidon on the other.

So that people standing on the ground could see them, these pediment sculptures were usually painted bright colors
and were arrayed on a solid blue or red background. This paint has faded with age; as a result, the pieces of
classical temples that survive today appear to be made of white marble alone.

PROPORTION AND PERSPECTIVE

The architects of classical Greece came up with many sophisticated techniques to make
their buildings look perfectly even. They crafted horizontal planes with a very slight
upward U-shape and columns that were fatter in the middle than at the ends. Without
these innovations, the buildings would appear to sag; with them, they looked flawless
and majestic.

SCULPTURE
Not many classical statues or sculptures survive today. (Stone statues broke easily, and
metal ones were often melted for re-use.) However, we know that sculptors such as
Pheidias and Polykleitos in the 5th century and Praxiteles, Skopas and Lysippos in the 4th century had figured out
how to apply the rules of anatomy and perspective to the human form just as their counterparts applied them to
buildings. Earlier statues of people had looked awkward and fake, but by the classical period they looked natural,
almost at ease. They even had realistic-looking facial expressions.

POTTERY
Classical Greek pottery was perhaps the most utilitarian of the era’s art forms.
People offered small terra cotta figurines as gifts to gods and goddesses,
buried them with the dead and gave them to their children as toys. They also
used clay pots, jars and vases for almost everything. These were painted with
religious or mythological scenes that, like the era’s statues, grew more
sophisticated and realistic over time.

Much of our knowledge of classical Greek art comes from objects made of
stone and clay that have survived for thousands of years. However, we can
infer that the themes we see in these works–an emphasis on pattern and
order, perspective and proportion, and man himself–appeared as well in less-
durable creations such as drawings and paintings.

ARTS IN ANCIENT ROME

The earliest Roman art is generally associated with the overthrow of the Etruscan kings and the establishment of the
Republic in 509 BC. Roman art is traditionally divided into two main periods, art of the Republic and art of the Roman
Empire (from 27 BC on), with subdivisions corresponding to the major emperors or imperial dynasties.

Roman art includes architecture, painting, sculpture and mosaic work. Luxury objects in metal-work, gem engraving,
ivory carvings, and glass, are sometimes considered in modern terms to be minor forms of Roman art, although this
would not necessarily have been the case for contemporaries.

When the Republic was founded, the term Roman art was virtually synonymous with the art of the city of Rome,
which still bore the stamp of its Etruscan art; during the last two centuries, notably that of Greece, Roman art shook
off its dependence on Etruscan art; during the last two centuries before Christ a distinctive Roman manner of
building, sculpting, and painting emerged. Never-the-less, because of the extraordinary geographical extent of the
Roman Empire and the number of diverse populations encompassed within its boundaries, the art and architecture of
the Romans was always eclectic and is characterized by varying styles attributable to differing regional tastes and the
diverse preferences of a wide range of patrons.

Roman art is not just the art of the emperors, senators, and aristocracy, but of all the peoples of Rome's vast empire,
including middle-class businessmen, freedmen, slaves, and soldiers in Italy and the provinces. Curiously, although
examples of Roman sculptures, paintings, buildings, and decorative arts survive in great numbers, few names of
Roman artists and architects are recorded. In general, Roman monuments were designed to serve the needs of their
patrons rather than to express the artistic temperaments of their makers.
While the traditional view of Roman artists is that they often borrowed from, and copied Greek precedents (much of
the Greek sculpture known today is in the form of Roman marble copies), more recent analysis has indicated that
Roman art is a highly creative pastiche relying heavily on Greek models but also
encompassing Etruscan, native Italic, and even Egyptian visual culture. Stylistic
eclecticism and practical application are the hallmarks of much Roman art.

Pliny, Ancient Rome's most important historian concerning the arts, recorded that
nearly all the forms of art - sculpture, landscape, portrait painting, even genre
painting - were advanced in Greek times, and in some cases, more advanced than
in Rome. Though very little remains of Greek wall art and portraiture, certainly Greek
sculpture and vase painting bears this out. These forms were not likely surpassed by
Roman artists in fineness of design or execution. As another example of the lost
"Golden Age", he singled out Peiraikos, whose artistry is surpassed by only a very
few. He painted barbershops and shoemakers' stalls, donkeys, vegetables, and
such, and for that reason came to be called the 'painter of vulgar subjects'; yet these
works are altogether delightful, and they were sold at higher prices than the greatest paintings of many other artists.
The adjective "vulgar" is used here in its original meaning, which means "common".

The Greek antecedents of Roman art were legendary. In the mid-5th century BC., the most famous Greek artists
were Polygnotos, noted for his wall murals, and Apollodoros, the originator of chiaroscuro. The development of
realistic technique is credited to Zeuxis and Parrhasius, who according to ancient Greek legend, are said to have
once competed in a bravura display of their talents, history's earliest descriptions of trompe l'oeil painting. In
sculpture, Skopas, Praxiteles, Phidias, and Lysippos were the foremost sculptors. It appears that Roman artists had
much Ancient Greek art to copy from, as trade in art was brisk throughout the empire, and much of the Greek artistic
heritage found its way into Roman art through books and teaching. Ancient Greek treatises on the arts are known to
have existed in Roman times though are now lost. Many Roman artists came from Greek colonies and provinces.

The high number of Roman copies of Greek art also speaks of the esteem Roman artists had for Greek art, and
perhaps of its rarer and higher quality. Many of the art forms and methods used by the Romans - such as high and
low relief, free-standing sculpture, bronze casting, vase art, mosaic, cameo, coin art, fine jewelry and metalwork,
funerary sculpture, perspective drawing, caricature, genre and portrait painting, landscape painting, architectural
sculpture, and trompe l'oeil painting - all were developed or refined by Ancient Greek artists. One exception is the
Greek bust, which did not include the shoulders.

The traditional head-and-shoulders bust may have been an Etruscan or early Roman
form. Virtually every artistic technique and method used by Renaissance artists 1,900
year later, had been demonstrated by Ancient Greek artists, with the notable
exceptions of oil colors and mathematically accurate perspective. Where Greek artists
were highly revered in their society, most Roman artists were anonymous and
considered tradesmen.

There is no recording, as in Ancient Greece, of the great masters of Roman art, and
practically no signed works. Where Greeks worshipped the aesthetic qualities of great
art and wrote extensively on artistic theory, Roman art was more decorative and
indicative of status and wealth, and apparently not the subject of scholars or
philosophers.

Owing in part to the fact that the Roman cities were far larger than the Greek city-states in power and population, and
generally less provincial, art in Ancient Rome took on a wider, and sometimes more utilitarian, purpose. Roman
culture assimilated many cultures and was for the most part tolerant of the ways of conquered peoples.
Roman art was commissioned, displayed, and owned in far greater quantities, and adapted to more uses than in
Greek times. Wealthy Romans were more materialistic; they decorated their walls with art, their home with decorative
objects, and themselves with fine jewelry.

In the Christian era of the late Empire, from 350-500 CE, wall painting, mosaic ceiling and floor work, and funerary
sculpture thrived, while full-sized sculpture in the round and panel painting died out, most likely for religious reasons.

When Constantine moved the capital of the empire to Byzantium (renamed Constantinople), Roman art incorporated
Eastern influences to produce the Byzantine style of the late empire. When Rome was sacked in the 5th century,
artisans moved to and found work in the Eastern capital. The Church of Hagia Sophia in Constantinople employed
nearly 10,000 workmen and artisans, in a final burst of Roman art under Emperor Justinian (527-565 AD), who also
ordered the creation of the famous mosaics of Ravenna. Roman styles and even pagan oman subjects continued,
however, for centuries, often in Christian guise.

PAINTING

Pompeian painter with painted statue and framed painting Pompeii

Our knowledge of Ancient Roman painting relies in large part on the preservation of artifacts from Pompeii and
Herculaneum, and particularly the Pompeian mural painting, which was preserved after the eruption of Vesuvius in
79 AD. Nothing remains of the Greek paintings imported to Rome during the 4th and 5th centuries, or of the painting
on wood done in Italy during that period.

In sum, the range of samples is confined to only about 200 years out of the about 900 years of Roman history, and of
provincial and decorative painting. Most of this wall painting was done using the secco (dry) method, but some fresco
paintings also existed in Roman times. There is evidence from mosaics and a few inscriptions that some Roman
paintings were adaptations or copies of earlier Greek works. However, adding to the confusion is the fact that
inscriptions may be recording the names of immigrant Greek artists from Roman times, not from Ancient Greek
originals that were copied.
Roman painting provides a wide variety of themes: animals, still life, scenes from everyday life, portraits, and some
mythological subjects. During the Hellenistic period, it evoked the pleasures of the countryside and represented
scenes of shepherds, herds, rustic temples, rural mountainous landscapes and country houses.

Erotic scenes are also relatively common. In the late empire, after
200AD, early Christian themes mixed with pagan imagery survive on
catacomb walls.

Roman mural painting is generally distinguished by four periods, as

originally described by the German archaeologist August Mau and
dealt with in more detail at Pompeian Styles.

LANDSCAPE AND VISTAS

The main innovation of Roman painting compared to Greek art was the
development of landscapes, in particular incorporating techniques of perspective, though true mathematical
perspective developed 1,515 years later.

Surface textures, shading, and coloration are well applied but scale and spatial depth was still not rendered
accurately. Some landscapes were pure scenes of nature, particularly gardens with flowers and trees, while others
were architectural vistas depicting urban buildings.

Other landscapes show episodes from mythology,

the most famous demonstrating scenes from the Odyssey.

STILL LIFE

Roman still life subjects are often placed in illusionistic niches or

shelves and depict a variety of everyday objects including fruit,
live and dead animals, seafood, and shells. Examples of the
theme of the glass jar filled with water were skillfully painted and
later served as models for the same subject often painted during
the Renaissance and Baroque periods.
PORTRAITS

Woman in Mosaic Roman fresco, Pompeii, Aphrodite

TOMB PAINTINGS

The portraits were attached to burial mummies at the face, from which almost all have now been detached. They
usually depict a single person, showing the head, or head and upper chest, viewed frontally. The background is
always monochrome, sometimes with decorative elements.

In terms of artistic tradition, the images clearly derive more from Greco-Roman traditions than Egyptian ones. They
are remarkably realistic, though variable in artistic quality, and may indicate the similar art which was widespread
elsewhere but did not survive. A few portraits painted on glass and medals from the later empire have survived, as
have coin portraits, some of which are considered very realistic as well.
PANEL PAINTING

In Greece and Rome, wall painting was not

considered as high art. The most prestigious
form of art besides sculpture was panel painting,
i.e. tempera or encaustic painting on wooden
panels. Unfortunately, since wood is a
perishable material, only a very few examples of
such paintings have survived, namely the
Severan Tondo from circa 200 AD, a very
routine official portrait from some provincial
government office, and the well-known Fayum
mummy portraits, all from Roman Egypt, and
almost certainly not of the highest contemporary
quality.

POTTERY

Ancient Roman pottery was not a luxury product, but a vast production of "fine wares" in
terra sigillata were decorated with reliefs that reflected the latest taste, and provided a
large group in society with stylish objects at what was evidently an affordable price.
Roman coins were an important means of propaganda, and have survived in enormous
numbers. Other perishable forms of art have not survived at all.

TRIUMPHAL PAINTINGS

From the 3rd century BC, a specific genre known as Triumphal Paintings appeared, as
indicated by Pliny (XXXV, 22). These were paintings which showed triumphal entries after
military victories, represented episodes from the war, and conquered regions and cities.
Summary maps were drawn to highlight key points of the campaign. These paintings have
disappeared, but they likely influenced the composition of the historical reliefs carved on
military sarcophagi, the Arch of Titus, and Trajan's Column. This evidence underscores the
significance of landscape painting, which sometimes tended towards being perspective
plans.

This episode is difficult to pinpoint. One of Ranuccio's hypotheses is that it refers to a victory
of the consul Fabius Maximus Rullianus during the second war against Samnites in 326 BC.
The presentation of the figures with sizes proportional to their importance is typically Roman, and finds itself in
plebeian reliefs. This painting is in the infancy of triumphal painting, and would have been accomplished by the
beginning of the 3rd century BC to decorate the tomb.
SCULPTURE

Traditional Roman sculpture is divided into five categories: portraiture, historical relief,
funerary reliefs, sarcophagi, and copies of ancient Greek works.

Roman sculpture was heavily influenced by Greek examples, in particular their bronzes. It
is only thanks to some Roman copies that a knowledge of Greek originals is preserved.
One example of this is at the British Museum, where an intact 2nd century AD. Roman
copy of a statue of Venus is displayed, while a similar original 500 BC. Greek statue at the
Louvre is missing her arms.

Contrary to the belief of early archaeologists, many of these sculptures were large
polychrome terra-cotta images, such as the Apollo of Veii (Villa Givlia, Rome), but the
painted surface of many of them has worn away with time. Romans were nearly unique in
the mixtures of materials (e.g. marble and porphyry) used both for painting and sculptures themselves, largely due to
cost.

Portrait sculpture from the Republican era tends to be somewhat more modest, realistic, and natural compared to
early Imperial works. A typical work might be one like the standing figure "A Roman Patrician with Busts of His
Ancestors" (c. 30 BC.)

By the imperial age, though they were often realistic depictions of human anatomy, portrait sculpture of Roman
emperors were often used for propaganda purposes and included ideological messages in the pose, accoutrements,
or costume of the figure. Since most emperors from Augustus on were deified, some images are somewhat idealized.
The Romans also depicted warriors and heroic adventures, in the spirit of the Greeks who came before them. Portrait
sculptures were more commonly found.

While Greek sculptors traditionally illustrated military exploits through the use of mythological
allegory, the Romans used a more documentary style. Roman reliefs of battle scenes, like those
on the Column of Trajan, were created for the glorification of Roman might, but also provide first-
hand representation of military costumes and military equipment.

Trajan's column records the various Dacian wars conducted by Trajan in what is modern day
Romania. It is the foremost example of Roman historical relief and one of the great artistic
treasures of the ancient world. This unprecedented achievement, over 650 foot of spiraling length,
presents not just realistically rendered individuals (over 2,500 of them), but landscapes, animals,
ships, and other elements in a continuous visual history - in effect an ancient precursor of a
documentary movie. It survived destruction when it was adapted as a base for Christian sculpture.
During the Christian era after 300 AD, the decoration of door panels and sarcophagi continued but
full-sized sculpture died out and did not appear to be an important element in early churches

ARTS IN ANCIENT CHINA

Ancient China covered a vast and ever-changing geopolitical landscape, and the art it produced over three millennia
is, unsurprisingly, just as varied. Still, despite continuous indigenous technical developments, changes in materials
and tastes, and the influence of foreign ideas, there are certain qualities inherent in Chinese art which make it
possible to describe in general terms and recognise no matter where or when it was produced and for what purpose.
These essential qualities include a love of nature, a belief in the moral and educative capacity of art, an admiration of
simplicity, an appreciation of accomplished brushwork, an interest in viewing the subject from various perspectives,
and a loyalty to much-used motifs and designs from lotus leaves to dragons. Chinese art would influence
tremendously that of its neighbours in East Asia, and the worldwide appreciation of its accomplishments, especially in
ceramics, painting, and jade work continue to this day.

THE REAL ARTS OF MERIT IN CHINA WERE CALLIGRAPHY & PAINTING.

Naturally, there were professional artists too, employed by the Imperial court or wealthy patrons to decorate the walls
and interiors of their fine buildings and tombs. Of course, there were, too, thousands of craftsmen working precious
materials into objects of art for the few who could afford them, but these were not regarded as artists in the modern
sense. The real arts of merit in China were calligraphy and painting. If the art world today is troubled by a certain
snobbishness, then the Chinese were perhaps the first to succumb to questions of what is and what is not art.

There grew up in China a connoisseurship of art so that more and more people became collectors of it. Texts were
printed to guide people on the history of Chinese art with helpful rankings of the various merits of past artists. In a
certain way, art became somewhat standardised with conventions to be adhered to. Artists were expected to study
the great masters, copying their works as part of their training. One of the most famous and long-lasting sources of
advice on judging art is the six-point list of the 6th century CE art critic and historian Xie He, originally published in his
now lost Old Record of the Classifications of Painters. When considering the merits of a painting the viewer should
assess the following (with point 1 the most important and essential):

1. Spirit Resonance, which means vitality.

2. Bone Method, which means using the brush.
3. Correspondence to the object, which means depicting the forms.
4. Suitability to type, which has to do with laying on of colour.
5. Division and planning, that is, placing and arranging.
6. Transmission by copying, that is, the copying of models. (Tregear, 94)

These relatively rigid rules of art creation and appreciation were, then, largely due to the belief that art should
somehow benefit the viewer. The idea, or better, the acceptance that art could and should express the feelings of the
artists themselves would only arrive in more modern times. Still, that is not to say there were not, just as in any art
anywhere in the world, eccentrics who ignored the conventions and created works in their own inimitable way. There
are cases in China of artists who painted to music not even looking at the picture, one who only painted when drunk
and used his cap instead of a brush, those who used their fingers or toes to paint, and even one action artist who
splashed ink on the silkspread out on his studio floor and then dragged an assistant over it. Sadly, the results of
these innovations have not survived to be enjoyed today in the world’s museums of Asiatic art.
Li Po's Calligraphy

CALLIGRAPHY

The art of calligraphy - and for the ancient Chinese it certainly was an art - aimed to demonstrate superior control and
skill using brush and ink. Calligraphy established itself as one of the major Chinese art forms during the Han
dynasty (206 BCE - 220 CE), and for two millennia after, all educated men were expected to be proficient at it. Some
women, or at least certain figures at court, did become known as accomplished calligraphers, most notably Lady Wei
(272-349 CE), said to have taught the great master Wang Xizhi (303-361 CE).

Far more than mere writing, the art used varying thicknesses of brushstroke, their subtle angles, and their fluid
connection to each other - all precisely arranged in imaginary spaces on the page - to create an aesthetically
pleasing whole. A connoisseurship quickly developed, and calligraphy became one of the six classic and ancient arts
alongside ritual, music, archery, charioteering, and numbers.

The techniques and conventions of writing would influence painting where critics looked for the artist’s forceful use of
brushstrokes, their spontaneity, and their variation to produce the illusion of depth. Another influence of calligraphy
skills on painting was the importance given to composition and the use of blank space. Finally, calligraphy remained
so important that it even appeared on paintings to describe and explain what the viewer was seeing, indicate the title
(although by no means all paintings were given a title by the original artist) or record the place it was created and the
person it was intended for. Eventually, such notes and even poems became an integral part of the overall
composition and an inseparable part of the painting itself. There was a fashion, too, for adding more inscriptions by
subsequent owners and collectors, even adding extra portions of silk or paper to the original piece to accommodate
them. From the 7th century CE owners frequently added their own seal in red ink, for example. Chinese paintings it
seems were meant to be perpetually handled and embellished with fine calligraphy.

PAINTING

Chinese painters painted on various materials in many formats. The most popular formats were on walls (from c.
1100 BCE), coffins and boxes (from c. 800 BCE), screens (from c. 100 CE), silk scrolls which were designed to be
looked at in the hand or hung on walls (from c. 100 CE for horizontal and from c. 600 CE for vertical), fixed fans (from
c. 1100 CE), book covers (from c. 1100 CE) and folding fans (from c. 1450 CE).
Chinese Eunuchs

The most popular materials with the earliest artists were wood and bamboo but then the following were adopted:
plastered walls (from c. 1200 BCE), silk (from c. 300 BCE), and paper (from c. 100 CE). Canvas would only be used
widely from the 8th century CE. Brushes were made from animal hair, cut to a tapering end and tied to a bamboo or
wood handle. Significantly, they were precisely the same instruments used by the calligrapher. The inks used were
made from rubbing a dried cake of animal or vegetable matter mixed with minerals and glue against a wet stone.
Each artist had to laboriously make their own inks as there was no commercial production of them.

THE TWO MOST POPULAR THEMES OF CHINESE PAINTING WERE PORTRAITS & LANDSCAPES.

The two most popular themes of Chinese painting were portraits and landscapes. Portraits in Chinese art began in
the Warring States Period (5th-3rd century BCE) and were traditionally rendered with great restraint, usually
because the subject was a great scholar, monk or court official and so should, by definition, have a good moral
character which should be portrayed with respect by the artist. For this reason, faces are often seemingly impassive
with only the merest hint of emotion or character subtly expressed. Often the character of the subject is much more
clearly expressed in their attitude and relationship to other people in the picture; this is especially true of portraits of
emperors and Buddhistfigures.

There were, however, instances of more realistic portraits and these can be seen particularly in the wall paintings of
tombs. A branch of portraiture was to paint historical figures in certain instructive scenes from their life which showed
the benefits of moral behaviour. Naturally, there were also paintings of people which had less lofty aims, and these
include the popular scenes of Chinese family life which are usually set in a garden.

Han Women, Dahuting Tomb.

Landscape painting had been around as long as artists had, but the genre really took off during the Tang
dynasty when artists became much more concerned with humanity’s place in nature. Typically, small human figures
guide the viewer through a panoramic landscape of mountains and rivers in Tang paintings. It should be no surprise
that mountains and water dominated landscape painting as the very word in Chinese for landscape translates literally
as “mountain-and-water”. Trees and rocks are also featured and the whole scene is usually meant to capture a
particular season of the year. Colours were limited in use, either everything in various shades of a single colour
(illustrating the roots in calligraphy) or two colours combined, usually blues and greens.

In accordance with the Taoist belief in the benefit of contemplating serene nature, there is rarely anything to disturb
the tranquillity of landscape paintings such as farm labourers and no specific location is intended to be depicted.
Later periods would, though, see more intimate and abstract scenes of nature concentrating on very specific themes
such as bamboo gardens. Detailed paintings of a single animal, flower, or bird were especially popular from the Song
dynasty (960-1279 CE) onwards, but these were regarded as artistically inferior to the other categories of Chinese
painting.

Still, certain animals became symbolic of certain ideas and appeared in paintings just as they had already in other art
forms like bronze work. For example, a pair of mandarin ducks denoted a happy marriage, a deer stood for money,
and fish for fertility and abundance. Similarly, plants, flowers, and trees had their own meanings. Bamboo grows
straight and true like a good scholar should be, the pine and cypress represent endurance, peaches long life, and
each season had its own flower: peony, lotus, chrysanthemum, and prunus.

The Emperor Ming Huang Travelling in Shu

Depth was achieved in paintings by introducing mist or a lake in the middle ground giving the illusion that the
mountains are further behind. Other devices include using paler ink and fainter strokes to paint more distant objects
while foreground objects are rendered darker and more detailed. Painting the scene with several different viewpoints
and multiple perspectives is another common characteristic of Chinese painting. One of the most famous of all
Chinese landscape paintings is the 8th century CE painted silk panorama known as 'The Emperor Ming Huang
Travelling in Shu'. It is a sprawling and detailed masterpiece of mountain scenery in the typical Tang style using only
blues and greens. The original is lost but a later copy can be seen at the Palace Museum of Taipei.

SCULPTURE

Large-scale figure sculpture has not survived well but some monumental examples can still be seen such as those
cut from the rock face at the Longmen Caves, Fengxian temple near Luoyang. Dating to 675 CE the 17.4 metre
high figures represent a Buddhist Heavenly King and demon guardians. Another celebrated example of Chinese
sculpture on a life-size scale are the figures of Shi Huangti’s “Terracotta Army”. Over 7,000 figures of warriors, 600
horses and several chariots were set to guard the tomb of the 3rd-century BCE Qin emperor. Much effort was made
to render each figure unique despite them all being made from a limited repertoire of assembled body parts made
from moulds. Faces and hair, in particular, were modified to give the illusion of a real army composed of unique
individuals.

Regarding smaller-scale works, the Shang Dynasty (c. 1600-1046 BCE) is famous for its cast bronze work.
Common shapes of bronze vessels are three-legged cauldrons, sometimes with the legs made into animals, birds, or
dragons. They can be circular or square, and many have lids and handles. Sharp relief decoration includes repeating
patterns, masks, and scroll motifs. The Shang artists also produced vessels in the form of three-dimensional animals
such as rams, elephants, and mythological creatures.

Shang Dynasty Bronze Zun

In the Han period, small-scale sculpture took the form of stone or bricks stamped and carved with relief scenes and
they are particularly common in tombs. Outstanding examples come from the Wu Liang Shrine at Jiaxiang. Dating to
151 CE or 168 CE, there are some 70 relief slabs which carry scenes of battles and famous historical figures, such
as Confucius, all identified by accompanying texts and covering a chronological Chinese history in a pictorial record
similar to a history book.

BY THE TANG DYNASTY, THE WEALTH OF THE BUDDHIST MONASTERIES PERMITTED A GREAT
PRODUCTION OF RELIGIOUS ART.

Also in the Han period, cast bronze sculptures of horses were popular. These are usually depicted in full gallop with
only one hoof resting on the base so that they almost appear to be flying. Earthenware figurines of single standing
women, men, and servants are common from the Han period. Cast bronze was used to make small figurines and
ornate incense burners. These were often inlaid with gold and silver or gilded. One superb piece is a gilded bronze
oil-lamp in the form of a kneeling servant girl, which dates to the late 2nd century BCE.

While the tombs of emperors and important people sometimes had large figure statues set outside them most later
sculpture was of Buddhist subjects. By the time of the Tang dynasty, the wealth of the Buddhist monasteries
permitted a great production of religious art. The most popular subjects, as ever, were the Buddha and bodhisattvas,
and they ranged from miniature figurines to life-size statues. Unlike in previous periods, figures became much less
static, their suggested flowing movement even drawing criticism from some that serious religious figures, on
occasion, now looked more like court dancers.
Tang Three-colour Glaze Jar

POTTERY

The Chinese were the masters of pottery and ceramics. They produced everything from heavy and functional storage
jars in earthenware to exquisitely decorated bowls in the most delicate of porcelain, from vases to garden stools,
teapots to pillows. They produced the first glaze wares, the first green celadons and the first underglaze wares
painted with cobalt blue. Early developments in techniques and kilns led to both higher firing temperatures and the
first glazed pottery during the Han period. Pottery, especially the vessels painted with a grey slip commonly found in
Han tombs, very often imitated the shape and decoration of bronze vessels, and this would be a goal of many potters
in later periods. Clay was used to produce small unglazed models of ordinary houses which were set in tombs to
accompany the dead and, presumably, symbolically meet their need for a new home. Many such models are
complete with adjacent animal pen and figurines of their occupants and animals.

Tang potters reached a level of technical proficiency greater than any of their predecessors. New colour glazes which
were developed in the period included blues, greens, yellows, and browns, which were produced from cobalt, iron,
and copper. Colours were mixed, too, producing the three-coloured wares the Tang period has become famous for.
Rich inlays of gold and silver were also sometimes used to decorate Tang ceramics. In the Yuan (1271-1368 CE)
and Ming (1368-1644 CE) periods even more famous ceramics would be produced with their distinctive and much-
copied blue on white decoration which itself copied earlier Chinese paintings for design ideas.

Hongshan Jade Dragon