Painted cloud and dragon ear cup

[Colored paint cloud dragon ear cup]

Colored paint cloud dragon ear cup, Western Han Dynasty, height 4.6 cm, caliber 16.2-9.2 cm, connecting ear width 11.6 cm, bottom diameter 9.7-5.6 cm
This cup was unearthed in the tomb of the Western Han Dynasty at No. 28, Gaotai, Jiangling, Jingzhou. It was made of bamboo and was lighter than the ear cup of the Warring States Period. The cup mouth is oval, with deep belly arc wall, flat bottom, short circle foot, crescent-shaped ears, and upturned ear surface. The outer edge of the cup mouth, the ear surface and the ear side are painted with wavy folds, dots and swirling cloud patterns. The exterior is painted with deep ochre paint and the interior is painted with red paint. The cup is divided into four equal parts by two vertical and horizontal thin lines, and the center is painted in ink with a petal-shaped pattern composed of four cirrus clouds. Each of the four equal parts is painted with a cirrus cloud dragon pattern in the opposite S-shape, which is hard to distinguish between the head and the tail. This kind of ink-painted S-shaped pattern, whether it is a cloud dragon or a cloud bird, is exquisite, beautiful, neat and elegant, and is one of the most characteristic patterns on the lacquerware of the Western Han Dynasty.