Three-color horseback hunting figurines

[Three-color horseback hunting figurines]

Tang Dynasty, 43 cm high
The horse is upright, leaning forward slightly, and ready to go. The rider has a high nose and deep eyes, whiskers, eight-letter mustache, a black Futou cap on his head, a green lapel and narrow sleeve robe, and black leather boots on his feet, with both hands holding the reins, staring at the front, and a dog squatting behind him. Su Shi’s “Jiangchengzi” describes: “The old man is talking about juvenile mania, holding yellow on the left and holding the Cang on the right. The marten fur in the brocade hat, and rolling the flat hill with thousands of horses.” The image of Hu Fu riding and shooting, holding yellow dog on the left hand, and holding a hawk on the right arm, widely appears in art works. The hunting figurines in the Tang Dynasty vividly reflect the hunting customs of the northern nationalities. What’s more, some of the hunting dogs he created were even gifts from Western Regions and other places, which showed the friendly exchanges between the Tang Empire and foreign countries.