Tomb Model of a House

Place of OriginChina

Dateabout 200 CE

DimensionsL: 8 3/4 in. (22.2 cm); W: 7 1/2 in. (19.1 cm); H: 9 5/8 in. (24.4 cm)

MediumUnglazed earthenware.

ClassificationSculpture

Credit LineGift of the Popplestone Family

Object number

2006.137

Not on View

DescriptionThis is a low-fired, unglazed earthenware model of a building, made from gray clay. It represents a simple, rectangular, gable-roofed house. The only opening is a single, square window on the upper story. The surfaces are encrusted with tan soil from burial.

Label TextDuring China's Han Dynasty (206 BCE–220 CE), tombs were furnished with ceramic models of everything the deceased might need for a comfortable afterlife. This earthenware house, known as a mingqi or "spirit good," would have provided eternal shelter for the soul. Such models are valuable records of everyday architecture, showing common building types that have long since vanished.