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1562651001
Bronze ritual wine vessel, conventionally called zun, in the shape of a pair of rams supporting a jar. This container is flanked by the heads and forequarters of two rams. The rams are very lifelike, specially the freely curling and fully rounded horns which project away from the animals' heads. They were probably cast first and then inserted into the moulds used for casting the rest of the bronze. The bodies of the rams are covered with small scales, and on each on the haunches standing out in slight relief a dragon-like creature is embedded among the scales; its head, crowned by two small bottle-horns, hanging down towards the hooves. Pairs of c-shaped projections fill the spaces between the legs; above lies the oval opening of the zun. The rectangular panels below this opening on the two sides of the vessel are filled with somewhat unorthodox taotie faces which have large pupils and bottle-shaped horns in relief; the rest of the faces being executed in thick scrolling reminiscent of Style II.
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