Object: Cinerary Urn

C/1955/8/1
Unknown location
Roman
Materials: marble, metal

This object is a Roman cinerary urn made of marble. A cinerary urn is a type of container used to contain the cremated remains of an individual. In various times throughout Classical history cremation was the preferred method of burial. Cinerary urns could be made of a variety of materials, from terracotta to stone. Early cinerary urns from Greece were often in the form or large pottery jars. In Italy these urns tended to be rectangular in shape, and early examples were made to resemble houses. It is thought that these funerary containers were meant to be the “houses” for the dead. During Roman times these urns would be displayed in wall niches in a tomb or columbarium. Because of how the urns were displayed, the backs of the urns (like the one at the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History) are undecorated.

This urn shows the figures of several Greco-Roman deities on the front. Starting from the left the first figure is probably Calliope, and is identified by her lyre. The second figure is easily recognizable as Mercury with his winged hat and caduceus. The third figure is Diana, shown with her signature bow and arrow. The final figure is Hercules, shown leaning on his club.

Front

The right side has some damage and was repaired in antiquity with metal, which can be seen from the top.

Right side

It is believed that the image on the left side of the cinerary urn shows a sacrifice of a sheep, or lamb. [Kate Barr]

Left side

A few other examples of cinerary urns can be found at:
The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
The Australian National University Museum
The Britsh Museum

Object: Tea Screen

AS-04-22-008
China
Ming Dynasty, 1368-1644
Materials: Jade, semi-precious stones, wood

This object is an oval shaped jade tea screen inlaid with brightly colored stones to form decorative patterns. The jade is a light green and the stones range from red, green, black, orange, pink, and purple. The design is of rocks, a tree and a bird. There is also a wooden frame that fits around the edge.

The purpose of the screen, like many jade objects, is a decorative one. Of course, the screen itself had a use; it was placed upon the table to prevent drafts to the lamp stand of the tea kettle. This is a very fine piece however, in that it was made of jade and decorated. Jade was a highly sought after material because of its status symbols, and it was also believed to bring health and good luck to the owner, so its use here might have been to cleanse the tea.

For more information on jade, read The Collector’s Book of Jade by Arthur and Grace Chu and Jade-Essence of Hills and Streams by S. Howard Hansford.

More information about Chinese tea ceremonies can be found here.

[Victoria Counts].

Object: Stone Vase

AS-04-23-061
China
Ch’ing Dynasty, 1662-1722
Materials: Agate or Jade

This beautifully carved stone vase is a somewhat large example of the art of carving jade flowers in China. It is made of a single stone varying in color from pink to amber, and the duality of the colors was captured as a light flower surrounded by darker vines. The stone was polished and shines in the light. The exact material is unknown but could also have been agate, which is a similar hard stone also used to carve decorations.

Jade has widely been a popular stone to work with in China for many hundreds of years. It was believed to be the stone from heaven because it came from high in the mountains. The typical image of jade is the deep green but it can actually come in a variety of colors such as white, blue, red, brown, yellow, grey and black. A single piece of stone may contain a range of colors. Typically a desired piece of jewelry will be one color and have no cracks or flaws, so most stones are difficult to use for this purpose. A master carver however, can use the flaws to shape a floral design by getting rid of cracks as part of the design and, even more impressive, use the color variations to enhance the life-like qualities of their design. This type of jade carving has long been popular in China and saw great advancements during the Ming Dynasty, 1368-1644.

For more information, read The Collector’s Book of Jade by Arthur and Grace Chu and Jade-Essence of Hills and Streams by S. Howard Hansford [Victoria Counts].

Object: Mosaic

C/50-1/1/1
Mosaic
Seleucia Pieria, Turkey
2nd century AD
Materials: Stone and concrete

This mosaic is from the House of Cilicia at Selucia Pieria, the harbor of ancient Antioch. Much of the city was excavated by a team of archaeologists from Princeton University in the late 1930’s. Their findings (including further information on this mosaic) were published by Doro Levi in Antioch Mosaic Pavements (Princeton, 1947).

This mosaic floor depicts a personification of the Roman territory of Kilikia or Cilicia. Prior to its excavation and removal, the floor contained other personifications as well. The largely obscured figure to the left of Kilikia was likely a representation of Mesopotamia. Additionally there would have been representations of four river gods just beyond the corners of our portion of the mosaic. These representations included personifications of the Tigris, and Pyramos rivers, the other two river gods have been lost to time but were most likely the Euphrates, Kydnos rivers . The two surviving corner pieces can now be found at the Detroit Institute of Art, and the Smith College Museum of Art.

This mosaic was part of a triclinium or dining room. This can be determined examining the way in which the entire mosaic was originally laid out. Traditionally in a triclinium there are three couches arranged in a U-shape along three walls of the room. This produced an open area in the center of the room where the food could be served to all of the guests. In houses with mosaic floors the area underneath the couches would be decorated with relatively simple designs. The central area of the triclinium would contain the most elaborate portion of the mosaic as it would be the part of the floor visible to all the guests during a banquet. The section of mosaic held at the Sam Noble Oklahoma Museum of Natural History was the central area of the triclinium as can be seen in the excavation photograph. [Kate Barr]

Object: Soapstone Seal

AS-04-01-053
Chinese Soapstone Seal
China
Unknown Date
Materials: Soapstone (Steatite), silk-based ink residue

A Chinese seal is a stamp containing Chinese characters used in East Asia on official documents, contracts, art and other texts where authorship is considered important. Seals were used instead of signatures because they were hard to forge and only the owner has access to their own seal. This type of seal is generally composed of steatite, commonly known as soapstone, or jade. The stamp may be carved into a raised relief known as Zhuwen creating imprints of red characters. Another option is to carve characters into a bas relief called Baiwen that stamps the background in red, creating white characters. Sometimes these two techniques are combined in a Zhubaiwen Xiangjianyin stamp.

The earliest documented use of seals in China dates to the Zhan-guo period (403-221 B.C.E.); though some speculate seals may have been used as early as 1050 B.C.E. The name, design, regulation, characters and purpose of seals changed through various dynasties.

Steatite and jade are the most common materials used for the production of seals. Steatite was preferred in some instances over jade because of its properties. Steatite is a form of mineral talc that is very soft and easy to carve. Over time, or through firing, steatite hardens, thus it becomes more durable with time and use. Cinnabar, castor oil and moxa punk are mixed with either a silk or plant base to produce ink. The result is a bright red tint in a thick paste for silk or a loose powder for plant bases.

This seal is decorated with the two Fu Dog motif. Other popular motifs include floral scenes, fish, frogs, dragons, lions, and birds, though the Fu Dog is the most popular. The Fu Dogs, or Rui Shi in Chinese (auspicious lions), are the beloved pets of Buddha and powerful mystic protectors. They are frequently presented in pairs, a male and female, and are symbolic of many of life’s dichotomies. They represent yin and yang, life and death, domesticity and bureaucracy, and fung shui and dharma. [Katie Pierce]