Cleveland Museum of Art

Cylindrical Container with Cover (Lian)

Date

100 BCE–100 CE

Medium

gilt bronze with openwork and chased designs

Culture

China, Han dynasty (202 BCE–220 CE)

Department

Chinese Art

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

This magnificent gilded bronze vessel with openwork decoration shows all kinds of fabulous creatures, real and imaginary, chasing each other among swirling scrolls. There is an emphasis on the unbroken rhythms of movement, rather than the ferocity of animals in combat. Cylindrical bronze vessels in this shape, called lian , were often used as cosmetic boxes.

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