Visual Analysis Charlotte Greenaway

Visual Analysis: MOA Edz1380

The clay figurine that will be analyzed in this assignment is known in the database of the

Museum of Anthropology in Vancouver as Edz1380 a-b. It is a 27 cm tall figure of a young

man standing dynamically with one foot almost raised from the flat base he’s standing on and

his right arm high up in the air. The figure is dressed in a draped piece of fabric and what is

possibly chest armour. Traces of paint suggest it was once brightly coloured. This visual

analysis will begin by describing the general appearance and pose of the figurine. Secondly, it

will describe traces of the technical skill the making of this figurine required and thirdly, the

damage it has suffered throughout time. Following these formal descriptions, this analysis will

draw attention to noteworthy details about the statue that raise questions which require deeper

research into the figurine. Lastly, this visual analysis will discuss how the figurine is displayed

in the Museum of Anthropology and assess the information the museum provides on the figure.

The great dynamism of the figure’s pose makes its overall impression seem quite light. Its body

takes on an S-shaped pose. The man’s right foot raises from the base, causing his knee to bend

and his hips and shoulders to slant to the right. His head turned to the left and right arm raised

higher than the left bring balance to this pose again. Seen from the left side the figure does lean

slightly backwards, but that is balanced out by his left hand that is outstretched almost frontally.

This attention to the lateral balance within the figure’s pose could reveal that it was to be looked

at from all sides, however seen from the side the figure does lack some volume. Seen frontally

the figure seems quite robust. The man’s defined chest, back and calve muscles highlight its

athletic pose and gesture. It is clear from the man’s attire and muscles that he is an adult.

However, the head of the figurine is disproportionately big compared to his body and his limbs

are almost chubby. These elements make the figure seem child-like, despite its apparent

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Visual Analysis Charlotte Greenaway

athleticism. The volume and pose of this figurine thus create a delicate balance making the

figure seem sturdily built, but still very light.

The clay shaping of the figurine adds to the effect described in the previous paragraph. While

the general structure of the statue seems to have been shaped in one piece, its features have been

delicately sculpted, carved or in some cases applied onto the basic clay structure. An example

of the intricate carving is the toga-like garment which flows naturalistically over the body of

the figurine, sometimes even almost clinging to the body. The back of the figurine is slightly

less worked out, but here too the fabric moves and flows like real textile. Seen from that side

one can also get a good sense of how the maker had an interest in showing the figure’s body.

Especially the exposed armpit and hip attests to this. The maker could have decided to conceal

the body with the drapery, but instead he chose to carve out the curves of the man’s body. From

this, it is clear that the maker had a real sense of the importance of the underlying anatomical

structure. A similar sense of anatomical unity can be detected in the face of the sculpture. The

figure has a slight smile playing on his lips. This smile seems to reach the man’s eyes, smile

lines form along his nose and a dimple appears on his right cheek. The maker thus shaped,

sculpted and carved this clay figure with an interest in anatomical unity and naturalistic effects.

As mentioned in the introduction, the figure also shows many traces that it was once brightly

coloured. Traces of black paint or oxidized paint are found on his hair, neck, upper body and

legs. His garment must have been red, although green traces also appear for example on the

central sash draping down from his waist. Lastly, gold traces are apparent on his necklace, the

curls of his hair and possibly his torso, suggesting that he is wearing chest armour. The figure

is in a good state. For example, although both arms are outstretched away from the central body

and not supported, they’ve suffered no damage. However, the slight abrasion damages and loss

of the paint layer, do create some confusion about how the man is depicted. First, the man

seemingly has no ears. Second, is the man wearing a tunic? Seen from the front, his left shoulder

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Visual Analysis Charlotte Greenaway

is clearly concealed by a short sleeve. However, as mentioned, from the back his right shoulder

seems exposed. Third, what are the cuffs or bracelets around his wrists and ankles? Although

the figurine is in a good state, it seems that the paint which has worn off would have been vital

to a better understanding of who or what this man represents.

As the previous paragraph suggests there are several elements that raise questions about this

figurine. It stands with its left arm raised frontally until the level of his hips and its right arm

bent upwards with his fist reaching the level of his ears. This right hand seems to suggest that

the figure was carrying some sort of tool, possibly a spear. Read in this way his outstretched

left hand could indicate that the figure is gauging how far to throw the spear, while his foot is

raised and turned to the right to place as much force as possible into the throw. In this case the

figure could be a warrior or an athlete. However, it is strange that while the integrity of the

figure itself is not damaged, this weapon would not have survived. This figurine therefore begs

for further research, not only to understand what it is representing, but also what the origin is

of the toga-like garment and golden curled hair.

This figurine is part of case 83: China in the Museum of Anthropology. It stands along with

several other small figurines and other tomb objects on the bottom row. It stands out among the

other figurines because of its dynamism and textured surface due to the amount of details the

maker applied. In addition, it’s the only figurine that has its own large flat clay base. The case

itself is a simple grey case allowing all the attention to go to the objects presented inside of it.

However, the way the case is lit does cast shadows on the figurine, especially on its face and

midriff. This low lighting also makes it difficult to make out the traces of pigment on the

figurine. Another point of critique would be that the back of the figure is not visible in this

presentation. As we’ve seen throughout this analysis the back of the figure is less worked out,

but still vital to a full understanding of how the maker thought out the body of this figurine.

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Visual Analysis Charlotte Greenaway

Finally, I will assess the information MOA provides about the figurine based on what we’ve

seen in class. The MOA database posits that this figurine dates from the Tang Dynasty and has

no extra information about its origin. I have no reason to doubt this information. Wu Hung does

state that Tang official regulations restricted the height of figurines such as this one to 20

centimeters, but he also immediately writes that these restrictions were barely ever followed

(Wu Hung, 117). If this figurine does stem from the Tang dynasty, this would also explain the

clothing which to my knowledge is foreign to the Tang dynasty. As the Tang dynasty was a

time in which the empire stretched deep into the west, the clothing and pose (throwing a spear)

could reveal an assimilation of Hellenistic or Roman motifs. Wu Hung also mentions that huren

or figures of foreigners started appearing in tombs from the mid-seventh century onwards (Wu

Hung, 106). This figure therefore could be part of that category of figurines, huren. This

assessment, however, would need more research into the figurine and its origin.

This assignment has look at MOA’s Edz1380 a-b and analyzed any clues the object’s visual

appearance could give us about what it depicts and how it was depicted. Through this analysis

the theory has been set up that this figure is a depiction of a Roman or Hellenistic athlete or

warrior throwing a spear, but such a conclusion would inquire further research beyond only the

visual.