Storage Jar c. 3000

ceramic, earthenware

ceramic

earthenware

food illustration

geometric

ceramic

abstraction

line

prehistoric

indigenous-americas

This earthenware Storage Jar, created by the Majiayao culture around 3000 BCE, features a unique combination of geometric and organic patterns. The jar's body is adorned with stylized eyes and wave-like motifs, painted in black and white against a light brown clay background. Its design suggests a connection to the natural world and potentially holds symbolic meaning related to fertility or protection. The jar's two loop handles add to its functionality, highlighting its role as a practical object used for storage. It stands at 20 1/2 inches tall and is on display at the Minneapolis Institute of Art.

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minneapolisinstituteofart about 1 year ago

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Located in the far northwest of China, the Majiayao culture (c. 3800-2000 BCE) produced an accomplished painted pottery tradition. Although originally derived from the Yangshao culture, Majiayao is now considered a culture of its own. Many of its tomb sites in Qinghai and Gansu provinces were richly furnished with decorative pottery. The culture went through an evolution of painted pottery designs that lasted more than a thousand years. During the Majiayao phase (3100-2700 BCE), when this spectacular storage jar was created, painted decoration had become independent. Designs have a distinctive linear quality with black parallel lines encircling the vessel with fluid and rhythmic movements creating striking graphic effects. The additional use of a white pigment, here effectively used to highlight the design, is somewhat rare. The vessel comes from Gansu or Qinghai province in the upper Huang He (Yellow River) basin; probably the most prolific pottery producing area between 4000 and 2000 BCE. The Majiayao region would later produce two other distinct types of painted pottery; Banshan (2600-2300 BCE) and Machang (1200-2000 BCE), classic examples of which are displayed below and to the left.