Figure of a Seated Court Lady

This is a very charming pottery figure at the Imperial Court of the Tang Dynasty, of a young lady, meant to be buried with the deceased to keep him or her company, and to entertain them. Things like this were made actually in fairly large quantity, but at the same time they were finished individually. Each one of them may have an individual character. This tells us about a particular period of time, the so-called Golden Age of the Tang Dynasty, when China had constant and frequent contact with the rest of the world. And she is sitting on a drum-shaped stool, imported from south Asia, over the seas. The little puppy that she has is very likely imported from Europe. China was a very cosmopolitan culture, an age when a woman sat on the throne and ruled this vast empire. It was also a time of fashion. This is one of the thirty-some hairdos of the time. People had a different concept of beauty. Being skinny was considered poorly fed. She has a very round full face and she has a full figure. She’s in a private moment. She probably was holding a mirror, trying to put on some more makeup. Her little puppy is playing with her slipper. You can tell that she’s very conscious of her beauty. It really shows us the real life, you can feel there’s the life force moving around. The Tang dynasty was a time when they had very bright colors for the costumes; the glaze is no exaggeration. But it also shows the advancement of technology of ceramics: still intact, almost like it was done yesterday. This was a time when the Chinese were able to combine the linear quality of the Chinese tradition--these rhythmic, flowing lines-- and the adopted Western tradition of three-dimensional representation of the human form. It’s this exchange, not just materials, but also the different ideas, the different concepts. It also tells us a lot about human nature, about this constant and eternal pursuit of beauty. The luster may go away as time goes by, but this pursuit will never fade.