Chinese Terracotta Tomb Figure East Han Dynasty

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A small Chinese terracotta tomb figure (Ni Yong) from East Han dynasty (25-220 AD), likely from the area of nowadays … Read more A small Chinese terracotta tomb figure (Ni Yong) from East Han dynasty (25-220 AD), likely from the area of nowadays Sichuan. It depicts a sitting male with courtly attires reading a book. His facial expression shows a faint smile. This kind of hand-molded terracotta figure fired at low temperature without glaze was popular in Han dynasty before porcelain was invented. They were made for funeral purpose as part of the burial ceremony to have daily objects to accompany the deceased to the afterlife.
To a very similar piece, see the last photos showing the collection in Sichuan Provincial Museum, Chengdu, China. See less