EarthenwareChina, Eastern Han (25-220 AD, thermoluminescence dating)Dimensions: Height 61 cm by 28 cm by 18 cmWeight: 7.8 kilogramsA terra-cotta sculpture of a kneeling woman. The body is made of gray pottery and bears traces of white engobe and red paint. The coating is partially flaky. The head was modeled separately and can be removed. The woman has a pot and a cutting board between her knees and a long knife in her right hand, with the left hand she is holding a fish that is laying on the board. The woman is wearing a dress with broad sleeves pulled up and a headdress with chrysanthemum flowers. Her facial expression is indicating pleasure or amusement. Female figurines with smiling faces and floral headdresses have been found in Eastern Han tombs in Sichuan Province located in southwest China. Their jolliness is associated with the spirit of the Shu people of Sichuan. Chinese tomb figurines were supposed to take care of a happy life after death. A female pottery figurine with chrysanthemums in her hair, now kept in the Sichuan Museum in Chengdu, has been interpreted as a representation of an attendant (pictured in Das Alte China: Menschen und Götter im Reich der Mitte 5000 v. Chr.-220 n. Chr., München 1995, pp. 246-428), and similar female figurines appear to be dancers or musicians. The floral headdresses, which are not seen on images found in tombs located near the capital city during the Han dynasty (202 BC-220 AD), seem to be early evidences of a new noble fashion style. In Han times, many powerful Han families were moved to Sichuan which provided rich sources and was known as ‘the region of rice and fish’. Expensively furnished tombs of Han families in Sichuan were enriched with pottery burial objects like wells, stoves, servants and even with stone carvings featuring dining scenes. The Portland Museum of Art keeps a kneeling female figurine with fishes floundering on a board but without a cook’s knife. This figurine is defined as a model of a female banquet chef (see Mysterious Spirits, Strange Beasts, Earthly Delights: Early Chinese Art from the Arlene and Harold Schnitzer Collection, Portland 2005, pp. 130-131).Purchased in the 1990’s at Zacke Auctions, Vienna, AustriaThe Age is confirmed by a TL test made at Kotalla laboratory , Haigerloch , GermanyAUCTION DATE:Saturday 23rd April 202211:00 - 13:00Preview:15. April - 17. April 2022 from 09:00 - 17:00AUCTION LOCATIONThe SpaceVorm Eichholz 2f42119 WuppertalGermanyEXHIBITED ONLY:Family Collection HofDelsbergerallee 654053 BaselSwitzerlandSPECIAL NOTESAll Lots are in Basel , and will be ped from there.All items must be paid to Hardt Auctions GmbHThe ment has to be arranged by the buyer.Hardt Auctions can not be held resposible for Export documents or local laws forCH-4132 Muttenz+41 61 467 95 00E-Mail:Kraft E.L.S. AGFlorenz-Strasse 5CH-4142 Münchenstein+4