Han Incense Burner in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, July 2017

Incense Burner (Boshan Lu)


Object Details

Period: Western Han dynasty (206 B.C.–A.D. 9)

Culture: China

Medium: Bronze

Dimensions: H. 12 11/16 in. (32.3 cm); Diam. of rim 5 3/16 in. (13.1 cm); Diam. of base 8 3/4 in. (22.3 cm)

Classification: Metalwork

Credit Line: Lent by Hebei Provincial Museum


This censer is of a type called boshan lu, or those in the shape of the universal mountain. The openwork lid features the cardinal emblems of early Han art: the Blue Dragon in the east, the Red Bird in the south, the White Tiger in the west, and the Dark Warrior in the north, the last of which is generally represented by a turtle entwined with a snake but here is embodied by a camel. The camel reflects Han contact with its nomadic neighbors. Similarly, the scene of animal combat and the man leading a cart on the lid’s upper register recall motifs on plaques excavated in the Ordos region, at the northwestern frontier of the empire.

Text from: www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/696659