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Food
Vessel: Gui
 Food
Vessel: Gui
China, reportedly found in Shandong Province; Eastern Zhou period, about
6th century B.C.E.
Bronze
1979.103 a-b
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Click for zoomable image
The striking contrast between the rounded bowl and square base of this
vessel reflects their separate origins. Originally, gui were simple basins,
but as the vessel type gained in importance at the beginning of the early
Western Zhou period (ca. 1050-771 B.C.E.), its visual impact was enhanced.
It was raised up on a square pedestal, initially of stone or wood, but
soon cast in bronze integrally with the vessel. Pedestaled gui were intermittently
popular during the Western Zhou period, but later disappeared except in
eastern and south-central China. The retention of the pedestal and the
flaccid wavelike pattern (actually a dissolved version of a mask) covering
the surface of the gui thus reflect the conservative tastes of eastern
states.
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