Mingqi, also known as “burial furniture” and “spirit objects,” translates as “items for the next world” or “spiritual utensils ” and is Chinese term for objects made specifically for burial purposes mingqi Mingqi are miniature earthenware models of items used in everyday life – that were made specifically for placement in tombs of wealthy Chinese upper class to make sure in their afterlife that they were surrounded in the enhanced environment they enjoyed in their life on earth. Chinese strict belief in life after death, filial piety, and the survival of the soul of the deceased in the afterlife resulted in funerary practices requiring families to honor the spirit of the dead and provide for the deceased soul’s comfort and happiness with abundant grave goods which would include miniature ceramic renderings of furnishing, utensils, offerings, livestock, buildings, tools, weapons, servants, animals, mystical beings, dancers and warriors and a huge variety of other everyday items. This practice existed for nearly two millennia but became too costly for most as the rich sought recognition by publicly displaying their wealth, power, social rank and filial piety for ancestors by the amount and quality of mingqi they provided. After spending fortunes to finance burials and contrary to existing laws to limit ostentatious spending and reduce families’ burden, ceramics used for burials were gradually replaced by the end of the Ming Dynasty by paper effigies and other flammable objects burned at funerals. The Song brick tiles used for funerary purposes are also considered mingqi.
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Wing or ear cups (yushang), a term that describes its side flange-like additions to its ovoid body, appeared as early as the Zhou dynasty (1046-256 BCE) made in lacquer and later from a variety of materials. Lacquerware cups were used as dining vessels used for rituals and ceremonies contain fragrances, food or wine; and the…
Hu vessels, first made in the Shang Dynasty is an ancient-pottery wine vessel whose body swells in the middle, flares into a narrow neck and often has a raised circular foot. Very popular during the Han dynasty, it was used as an ancestral tomb burial object (mingqi) to hold liquids and elixirs for the deceased…
Mingqi are ancient earthenware pottery items usually made using a bivalve mould and covered with a lead glaze that fired to a dark green. The lead in the glaze often combined with tomb dampness for centuries creating a chemical reaction changing its coloring into a lustrous and iridescent green seen here. Han mingqi were ancestral…
In China a set of earthenware Zodiac attendant figures was made as a 12 piece grouping, with each figure holding a small calendar animal with each year represented by a different animal – rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog, and pig or boar – in a repeating 12-year cycle. Although…
Often ancestral figures were portrayed sitting in horseshoe chairs to reflect their high status. As many earthenware mingqi, this well-modeled chair has a liberally applied green glaze resulting in expected drips around the stretchers. The seat is decorated with a yellow glaze imitating caning and the decorative carved design on the splat also has a green glaze and a carved decorative “clocklike” circular design. The bottom of the seat and legs are not usually glazed. In very good condition with expected minor chips and minor glaze deterioration consistent with its age and long burial, it pairs perfectly with item 3330 and together would add to a fine collection of Chinese ceramics or brighten up a small space.
This charming miniature Ming dynasty ceramic horseshoe pottery chair is an accurate model of an impressive beautifully grained hardwood Ming chair with a continuous horseshoe shaped top rail and a caned seat. The curved splat of a wood chair might have either carved or pierced motifs or medallions and straight or curved stretchers joining the legs in pairs at the same height on each side. Often ancestral carved figures were portrayed sitting in horseshoe chairs and reflect the high status of the figure they were portraying. This ceramic mingqi (burial item) has a thick green glaze throughout which was liberally applied normal usual drips around the stretchers. The seat is decorated with a yellow glaze in imitation of caning as is the decorative carved design on the splat, but the bottoms of the seat and legs are unglazed. The rail ends splay to the right and left for hand comfort and decorative effect are traditionally found in Ming Dynasty hardwood chairs. In very good condition with minor chips and paint losses, it was buried underground in a tomb for centuries. This would be a fine addition to a collection of antique ceramics or simply a beautiful decorative piece to brighten a small space.
This fine set of three elegant Ming dynasty attendants—one male and two female—are in a unique category of refinement and elegance that reflects the importance and high status of the tomb, the deceased and the family for which they were made. Standing on hexagonal bases with arms folded below their chests and presenting offerings to the deceased, their clothing and parts of the bases have a rare cobalt blue glaze. (Two have yellow glazed areas and all have painted unglazed areas.) Their removable heads are highly detailed and beautifully modeled fitting inside high collars. These figures are presented and sold as a remarkable set reflecting their original presentation and condition.
This fascinating thick Song pottery brick is a low-fired depiction of a dwarf foreigner with a rotund belly, a large head and nose, an open mouth and abnormal features. The Chinese believed dwarfs could ward off evil spirits and sickness, attract peace and blessings (fu) and were very wise. Images of dwarfs became so popular, some were produced in numbers.
As part of the The Song dynasty cultural expansion, government and public buildings and tombs were built with interior walls decorated with earthenware unglazed mold-made brick tiles. This fanciful vibrant tile with a scalloped frame portrays two people playing a board game called wéiqí which originated in China over 2500 years ago. It is the world’s oldest and most complex board game still played.
This late Song dynasty earthenware ceramic brick tile portrays a couple sitting behind a banquet table with foods placed in front of them. On the right are two figures, one of whom points to a stylized image of a bat flying in the sky.
Cocoon jars were mingqi made for placement in tombs to comfort the deceased on their journey to and in their afterlife. An elixir of Immortality made from mulberry leaves or their ashes was placed inside for the deceased to drink and transmigrate into the world of the beyond. Ovoid in shape to resemble a silkworm cocoon, ajar rests on a small trumpet-shaped foot and has a narrow neck and a wide lip at its mouth. Painted after firing with vertical bands dividing it into panels, swirling cloud scrolls, and circular “eye” motifs at each end, this beautiful vessel is in excellent condition for its age with expected paint losses, scrapes, and dirt adhesions.
This earthenware brick tile bordered with a deep scalloped frame depicts a vase with a bouquet of propitious flowers: a chrysanthemum and a peony wrapped with an elegant ribbon. Tiles like this were made to decorate the large numbers of buildings created during the prosperous Song dynasty and to adorn tombs. This elegant brick is in good condition for its age with expected chips and cracks, some restoration of background and a re-glued frame break on each side. It has earth adherents from its burial in a tomb.
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