The Gold-decorated Silver Kettle with the Pattern of a Dancing Horse

The Gold-decorated Silver Kettle with the Pattern of a Dancing Horse was made on the basis of the bagging pot of the nomadic people of Qidan. The design of two horses shaking their heads and wagging their tails confirms the historic records that people domesticated dancing horses during the Emperor Xuanzong of Tang Dynasty, with high-degree cultural and artistic values.

The horses at Tang Dynasty were widely used not only in war, transportation and other areas, but also for the social entertainment of the imperial nobles, in particular the attractive dancing horses. It’s even said that at the birthday of the Emperor Xuanzong, the dancing horse even danced in concert with the music and held the cup in its mouth to congratulate him on his birthday. After the Turmoil of Anshi in Tang Dynasty, dancing horses gradually disappeared into the history of ancient China as a unique imperial entertainment. Since then, many have even doubted whether this entertainment ever existed, since the actual details of the practice were left to the imagination by the historic documents. After textual research on the Gold-decorated Silver Kettle with the Pattern of a Dancing Horse, the imperial entertainment of dancing horses was verified.

The Pattern of Mandarin Ducks and Lotus Petals

Two Gold Bowls with the Pattern of Mandarin Ducks and Lotus Petals, the perfect combination of the Western gold crafts and the Eastern aesthetic flavors, were excavated at Hejiacun village. They are considered by many scholars to be the most gorgeous gold items of the Tang Dynasty. The lines “9.3-liang” and “9.5-liang” separately inside the bowls denote the weights of the two items. The bowls, stately and graceful, were made by beating them. The convex lotus petals on the vessel walls, as well as the compact roe designs on the bottom, signify multiple offspring and blessings.