Gilt Bronze Human-shaped Lamp

Gilt Bronze Human-shaped Lamp

It seems that we could picture the era illuminated by the lamp when we look at it. An imperial lady from the Western Han Dynasty with slender eyebrows in her round face, sits barefoot wearing a scarf on her head and a wavy Ju Dress. Though she has not moved a single step for more than two thousand years, she has brought us a beam of light afar from the Western Han Dynasty.

In China, lamps also have their own various figures. Today, our cultural relic is one example.

Changxin Palace Lantern was found in the Han Dynasty tomb of Prince Liu Sheng of Zhongshan’s wife, Dou Wan, in Mancheng County, Hebei. It is named after Changxin Palace, where Liu Sheng’s grandmother, Empress Dou, lived.

The lamp is shaped like a lady in waiting presenting the lamp in a kneeling position and dressed in popular Han Dynasty clothing and ornaments. The lamp’s shade can open and close, the lamp is rotatable, and it has a pipe to direct the smoke, which makes for a very clever structure.