Page 491 - The Golden Age of Chinese Archaeology: Celebrated Discoveries from the People’s Republic of China

Cat. 173

century CE, sancai (three-color) glazes were becoming the preferred finish for the mingqi in-
terred in the tombs of the highest-ranking Tang aristocracy. Figures found in the tomb of the
princess Jinxiang and that of the princess Yongtai suggest that the choice of paint versus glaz-
ing was a function of the decedent's status. As an imperial princess who died during the reign

of Empress Wu, Yongtai was given a high-status burial in 706 — after the Tang had been
reestablished. Her single tomb, with a large complement of paintings and superb funerary ob-
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jects, contains painted pottery figures, but many of the vessels and figures are in sancai. The
vast majority of mingqi in Jinxiang's tomb, by contrast, are not glazed; their surface decoration is
composed of pigments applied to a white slip over the low-fired ceramic body. The only sancai
pieces listed in the excavation report for the tomb are a basin and a small handleless cup — an
apparent reflection of Jinxiang's relatively low status.
As sculptural representations of the fashions of the time, the highest-quality painted pot-
tery mingqi tend to be more successful than those that are glazed. While sancai'-glazed objects
obviously required greater expenditures of materials and labor, the application of the glaze and
the nature of the glaze itself did not permit the replication of fine details in drapery or physiog-
nomy: The colors of the glaze dominate the mingqi, often bearing little relation to the accurate
depiction of the figure. Because of the requirements of the glazing process, sancai pieces also

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