Sources of Han Décor: Foreign Influence on the Han Dynasty Chinese Iconography of Paradise (206 BC-AD 220)

By (author) Sophia-Karin Psarras

Book cover: Sources of Han Décor: Foreign Influence on the Han Dynasty Chinese Iconography of Paradise (206 BC-AD 220)

Extent: 156 pages

Publisher: Archaeopress Publishing

Subjects: Asian/Pacific Studies & Religions

Language: English

Paperback (Published)

(January 2020)

ISBN: 9781789693256

6.85 x 9.65 inches

Price: $45.00

Out of stock

Using archaeological data to examine the development of Han dynasty Chinese art (206 BC-AD 220), this book focusses on the iconography of paradise. Influence from the Chinese Bronze Age is discussed along with a surprisingly profound debt to Greece, the Near East and the steppe.


Using archaeological data to examine the development of Han dynasty Chinese art (206 BC-AD 220), Sources of Han Decor focusses on three major iconographies (the animal master, the tree of life, and animal predation), together with a series of minor motifs (particularly the griffin and a number of vegetal forms). All of these are combined in what may be considered the most important iconographic creation of the Han: images of paradise. While influence from the Chinese Bronze Age (especially, c. the 14th-3rd centuries BC) on Han art is expected, a surprisingly profound debt to Greece, the Near East, and the steppe is evident not only in the art of the Han era, but in that of the preceding Eastern Zhou (c. 771-221 BC). Initial Eastern Zhou incorporation of this largely-Western influence appears concentrated in chronological parallel to the Orientalization of Greek art (c. the 7th century BC) and the eastern spread of Hellenism (c. the 4th century BC), followed by repeated introduction of foreign motifs during the Han, when these influences were fully integrated into Chinese art.

Chronologies Introduction I: Major Iconographies Chapter 1 Eastern Zhou Context Chapter 2 The Animal Master Chapter 3 Developments Related to the Animal Master Chapter 4 Tree of Life Chapter 5 Animal Predation II: Decorative Elements Chapter 6 Fantastic Elements Chapter 7 Plant Motifs Conclusion Maps Figures Selected References Index, Chronologies ;

Introduction ;

I: Major Iconographies II: Decorative Elements Conclusion ;

Maps ;

Figures ;

Selected References ;

Index

  • By (author) Sophia-Karin Psarras