這件精美的錯金銀立獸1883年入藏大英博物館，錯金錯銀鑲嵌寶石作為眼睛。這類作品在洛陽金村、中山王墓均有發現，是毫無疑問的貴族所用。
跳躍的獅子或貓形象，拱形站立，尾巴指向天空，頭向後仰，呲牙咧嘴，眼睛凸出。以金、銀鑲嵌造型的鳥和蛇，以及抽象的圖案，包括捲軸、彎曲的線條和撕裂形狀。由青銅製成，可能是用作托盤的支架。
在這個時期，中國人不使用椅子，而是坐在地上，所以放在他們面前的桌子就像是短腿上的托盤。在公元前 8 世紀的祭祀革命之後，用來祭祀祖先的精緻青銅禮器不再那麼重要，因此製作的青銅禮器也減少了。顏色鮮艷的漆器越來越受歡迎，為了與這種材料競爭，青銅器製造商使用金、銀、銅鑲嵌以及半寶石甚至玻璃來裝飾青銅器。
這件青銅器的漩渦、繪畫式和幾何式的裝飾風格、螺旋和寬度的交替，以及鳥頭的終端，都讓人聯想到大約同一時期的漆器作品。這種富有想像力的裝飾安排可能與中國南方有關。
Museum number
1883,1020.5
Description
Figure of a leaping feline (lion or cat), standing arched, with tail pointing to sky, head back, bared teeth and bulging eyes. Inlaid in gold and silver with stylized birds and snakes, as well as abstract designs including scrolls, curved lines and tear shapes. Made of bronze, it was probably used as a tray support.
Cultures/periods
Eastern Zhou dynasty
Production date
4thC BC-3rdC BC
Production place
Made in: China (South (probably))
Asia: China
圖片拍攝：Frank Lin
Dimensions
Height: Height: 23 centimetres
Weight: Weight: 913 grammes
Width: Width: 9.50 centimetres
Depth: Depth: 11.50 centimetres
Michaelson 2006:
At this period the Chinese did not use chairs but sat on the ground, so tables placed before them were like trays on short legs. Following a ritual revolution in the 8th century BC it was no longer so important to have the elaborate bronze ritual vessels for ancestral sacrifices, and many fewer were made. Lacquer, which could be very colourful, was becoming increasingly popular and to compete with this material, the bronze manufacturers used gold, silver and copper inlays, as well as semi-precious stones and even glass, to decorate their bronzes. The swirling, painterly and somewhat geometric style of decoration of this piece, the spiral and alternation of widths, and the bird-head terminals are all reminiscent of lacquer work of about the same period. Such imaginative decorative arrangements are probably related to the south of China.
Exhibition history
2003 18 Oct-14 Dec, Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum, Treasures of the World's Cultures
2004 17 Jan-28 Mar, Kobe City Museum, Treasures of the World's Cultures
2004 10 Apr-13 Jun, Fukuoka Art Museum, Treasures of the World's Cultures
2004 26 Jun-29 Aug, Niigata Bandaijima Art Museum, Treasures of the World's Cultures
2012 18 Apr – 17 Jul, Abu Dhabi, Manarat Al Saadiyat, ‘Treasures of the World’s Cultures’
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