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China

Tripod Caldron (Ding)

Western Han dynasty, 206 BCE–9 CE
Gray earthenware with mold-impressed decoration
23.2 × 27.8 cm (9.1 × 10.9 in)

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In the collection of Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago · as of July 2026

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FROM THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO’S CATALOG

During the Han dynasty, economic stability and growth allowed officials and landowners to afford burial goods like aristocratic families could. Clay replicas of costly bronze and lacquer vessels also met the wider demand from middle-income patrons for tomb furnishings. This cauldron, modeled after a common bronze shape, has a lid that depicts a sinuous dragon—a design commonly found on lacquerware.

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