Beginnings of Chinese Sculpture
Pottery and Jade Sculptures in Primitive Times
Chinese sculpture is one of the oldest art forms in the world. The oldest examples date back to the Neolithic Age. Advances in archaeology have led to the discovery of older pieces. During the 1990s, an 8,000-year-old stone sculpture of a dragon, which is around 20m in length, was unearthed. It is believed to be the earliest large stone sculpture ever discovered in China.
Chinese pottery sculptures first peaked during the Neolithic Age. By then, people had mastered potting techniques. Most sculptures from the time are made from pottery, wood, stone or bone and represent human and animal forms. Preserved sculptures are mostly pottery or jade. Similar to primary stage works from other civilizations, those vivid sculptures were made mainly to meet the needs of witchcraft and hunting. They clearly display the early abstract characteristics of China’s formative arts. People understand the sculptural outlook of that period mostly from archaeological discovery. Each find helps better understand that ancient civilization and make the ancient sculptural outlook clearer.
Pottery sculptures in primitive times
Primitive pottery sculptures were made soon after the emergence of potting techniques. They had mostly practical functions. The “pottery pot” is most common. It is often designed with a human face or human head on top, or it is shape like an animal. In fact, such designs are also very common in other early cultures, such as ancient Persia and India. In ancient China, pottery sculptures fell into one of three types: overall animal images; circular or relief sculptural ornaments in animal or human form as part of an article (such as the cover, knob and surface); and single animal or portrait sculptures like nude female sculptures or shaped like a hand. The last usually had obvious primitive religious and witchcraft features. Pottery figure sculptures
The famous neolithic Chinese pottery includes pieces from the Yangshao, Majiayao and Dawenkou cultures. Many excellent ornamental sculptures have been well preserved, including a lively 12.5-cm pottery piece of a maiden’s head unearthed in Gaositou, Lixian County, Gansu Province. It is made of orange yellow clay by means of simple techniques. It belongs to the Banshan branch of the Yangshao culture and it is often mentioned in university courses of the history of Chinese arts. The features of the face are simple, with three hollow ovals representing the eyes and mouth. Her ears and nose are also simple. Her face is fruity and her air is relaxed and full of pleasure. The sculpture gives the impression of sincerity and simplicity. At the top of her head there are thin ornamental ribbons similar to plaits, which reflect the everyday life of those early people rather than strong religious features. The head is not an independent sculpture work. It is cleverly done, with circular carving as part of the mouth.
Yangshao culture
Yangshao culture (5000 BC–3000 BC), one of the key examples of matriarchal society in China, was first found in Yangshao Village, Mianchi County, Henan Province, hence the name “Yangshao culture.” The culture left behind some potter y decorated with dark red or black patterns on or ange-red or redbrown backgrounds. These are outstanding examples of painted pottery in China’s Neolithic period. As a result, it is also known as the “Painted Pottery Culture.”
The unique quality of pottery designed with a sculpted figure of a human head is visible on another masterpiece of Banshan type in Yangshao culture, which is a pot with a mouth in the form of a head. The pot was unearthed in Luonan, Shaanxi. It is a well-preserved 23cm pot of red clay with a sculpture of a human head. The eyes and mouth are also hollow holes. The hollow-out work leaves behind some shadows that enhance the expressive forces of the sculpture and produces an open feeling of “enlightenment” and “ventilation” bringing the sculpture to life.
The Yangshao culture left behind many similar works. The sculpture of a human face unearthed in Chajiaping, Tianshui City, Ganshu, is also the top of a mutilated piece of pottery. The life-size female face is part of a large 25.5cm high and 16cm wide article. She has a narrow and flat forehead, beautifully thin, long eyebrows and light eyeholes, reflecting oriental beauty. Her eyes are small and her nose bridge straight. Her cheekbones are prominent and her face wide. She is smiling, with her lips slightly parted. She is a typical Asian feminine image. This type of sculpture, with apparent sexual features, is probably linked to popular goddess worship. Such worship wasn’t ferocious or strict but full of the warmth of living and the pleasures of life. The sculpture is very different from the religious images that surfaced during the slavery society. Those ferocious and intimidating images are discussed in the following chapter.
Some primitive pottery has colorful paint. Typical examples are pieces combining portraits and sculpture with beautiful patterns. The black patterns on the cover of a piece of Banshan-type human head pottery reflect the techniques, social customs and aesthetical standard of primitive times. The design patterns represent the abstract ornamental features of Neolithic painted pottery. A classic example is a bottle unearthed in the Dadiwan Neolithic site in Qinan County, Gansu Province in 1973. It belongs to a human head-shaped painted pottery bottle of the Miaodigou type. It is not only well preserved but also beautiful in shape and decoration.