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Source Description
The most remarkable feature of this object is the four kneeling figures with ornamented bodies; Han dynasty sources mention cut hair and tattooing as a custom among the local Yue people. This bronze work served as a handle and top ornament of a large, barreled drum called <em>jiangu</em> (建鼓), supposedly made of lacquer and alligator skin. Two comparable handles from tombs dated to the Spring and Autumn period in Jiangsu and Anhui provinces were found amid musical instruments. The handle allows the drum to be suspended and played from the sides.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
120822
label
Handle of a Jiangu Drum
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
120822
contentType
object
title
Handle of a Jiangu Drum
description
The most remarkable feature of this object is the four kneeling figures with ornamented bodies; Han dynasty sources mention cut hair and tattooing as a custom among the local Yue people. This bronze work served as a handle and top ornament of a large, barreled drum called <em>jiangu</em> (建鼓), supposedly made of lacquer and alligator skin. Two comparable handles from tombs dated to the Spring and Autumn period in Jiangsu and Anhui provinces were found amid musical instruments. The handle allows the drum to be suspended and played from the sides.
date
c. 770–475 BCE
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q80016462
genreSpecific
Metalwork
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Overall: 9 cm (3 9/16 in.)
cul
China, Zhou dynasty (c. 1046–256 BCE), Spring and Autumn period (770–475 BCE)
accession
1941.548
Source extras
tec
bronze
tombstone
Handle of a Jiangu Drum (建鼓頂部), c. 770–475 BCE. China, Zhou dynasty (c. 1046–256 BCE), Spring and Autumn period (770–475 BCE). Bronze; overall: 9 cm (3 9/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Edward L. Whittemore Fund, 1941.548
titleInOriginalLanguage
建鼓頂部
collection
China - Zhou Dynasty
didYouKnow
The square stud on the head of each figure may represent a bun.
citations
citation
<em>The Chinese Exhibition; A Commemorative Catalogue of the International Exhibition of Chinese Art, Royal Academy of Arts, November 1935-March 1936</em>. London: Faber and Faber, 1936.
page_number
Mentioned: cat. no. 117, p. 7
citation
C.T. Loo, Inc. (New York, N.Y.), and J. Leroy Davidson. <em>An Exhibition of Chinese Bronzes</em>. New York: The Company, 1939.
page_number
Reproduced
citation
Riepe, Marion W., James M. Menzies, and James Marshall Plumer<em>. An Exhibition of Ancient Chinese Ritual Bronzes</em>. Detroit, MI: Detroit Institute of Art, 1940.
page_number
Reproduced
citation
von Spee, Clarissa, Yiwen Liu, Xiaofei Tian, Richard Von Glahn, Feng Zhao, Shelagh J. Vainker, Masaaki Itakura, Jiang Wu, Zhenghua Wang, and Yifan Li. <em>China's Southern Paradise: Treasures from the Lower Yangzi Delta</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 2023.
page_number
Mentioned and Reproduced: p. 101, cat. no. 9
creditline
Edward L. Whittemore Fund
updatedAt
2026-05-29 06:13:40.265000
sourceId
120822
dept
Chinese Art
coll
China - Zhou Dynasty
med
bronze
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
dc7ce249306956c9