Skip to main content Smithsonian Institution

Catalog Data

Medium:
Bronze
Dimensions:
H x W x D: 21.2 x 17.4 x 17.1 cm (8 3/8 x 6 7/8 x 6 3/4 in)
Type:
Vessel
Origin:
China
Date:
ca. 11th century BCE
Period:
Shang dynasty
Provenance:
By 1940 to 1948
C. T. Loo & Company, New York, NY [1]
1948 to 1953
C. T. Loo, INC., New York, NY by transfer from C. T. Loo & Company, NY [2]
1953 to 1961
C. T. Loo Chinese Art, New York, NY by transfer from C. T. Loo, INC., NY [3]
1961 to 1964
Frank Caro Chinese Art, New York, NY from C. T. Loo Chinese Art, NY mode of acquisition unknown [4]
1964 to 1987
Dr. Arthur M. Sackler, New York, NY purchased from Frank Caro Chinese Art, New York, NY on August 26, 1964 [2]
From 1987
Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, gift from Arthur M. Sackler on September 11, 1987 [3]
Notes:
[1] See An Exhibition of Ancient Chinese Ritual Bronzes, Loaned by C. T. Loo & Co. The Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, MI (October 18 to November 10, 1940), no. 15.
[2] In 1948, when C. T. Loo & Company lost direct access to trade in China, C. T. Loo formed the company C. T. Loo, INC. In 1950, C. T. Loo announced his retirement. Loo appointed his daughter, Janie Emanuel Loo as the head of the Paris branch of C. T. Loo & Company (C. T. Loo & Cie) and his associate, Frank Caro, as the head of the New York Branch, which operated as C. T. Loo Chinese Art.
C. T. Loo, INC. was dissolved by the summer of 1953. When Caro assumed leadership, he re-inventoried stock and assigned new numbers, many of which began with an “E.” This object, “E-5077” was part of that inventory process.
[3] See note 2.
[4] In 1961, Loo and Caro’s agreement ended. C. T. Loo & Cie., Paris, France took control of C. T. Loo Chinese Art, New York stock, which C. T. Loo added to the inventory before his death in 1957. Frank Caro then operated as Frank Caro Chinese Art.
[5] See invoice from Frank Caro Chinese Art to Dr. Arthur M. Sackler, August 26, 1964, copy in the object file. Frank Caro Chinese Art inventoried this object as E-5077 and described it as a “Bronze ritual vessel TING with large t’ao t’ieh masks on meander ground. Shang. (Detroit Cat. #15).”
[6] Pursuant to the agreement between Dr. Arthur M. Sackler and the Smithsonian Institution, dated July 28, 1982, legal title of the donated objects was transferred to the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery on September 11, 1987.
Collection:
Arthur M. Sackler Collection
Exhibition History:
The Arts of China (November 18, 1990 to September 7, 2014)
In Praise of Ancestors: Ritual Objects from China (September 28, 1987 to January 1, 1989)
An Exhibition of Ancient Chinese Ritual Bronzes (October 18 to November 10, 1940)
Previous custodian or owner:
C.T. Loo & Company (1914-1948)
C.T. Loo, INC. (ca. 1948-no later than July 1953)
C.T. Loo Chinese Art (1953-1961)
Frank Caro Chinese Art (1962-1980)
Dr. Arthur M. Sackler (1913-1987)
Topic:
casting  Search this
metal  Search this
bronze  Search this
Shang dynasty (ca. 1600 - ca. 1050 BCE)  Search this
China  Search this
Chinese Art  Search this
Credit Line:
Gift of Arthur M. Sackler
Accession Number:
S1987.304
Restrictions & Rights:
Usage conditions apply
Related Online Resources:
Google Cultural Institute
See more items in:
Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Collection
Data Source:
Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery
GUID:
http://n2t.net/ark:/65665/ye3d92c8201-3ccf-434b-b440-5066b55d61b7
EDAN-URL:
edanmdm:fsg_S1987.304