Female Figure of a Court Entertainer Dancing (Head) (100s CE): Art, History and Details

Female Figure of a Court Entertainer Dancing (Head) (100s CE) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection.

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

During the Han era, tombs of the elite were provided with sculpted renditions of their earthly entourage, such as guardians or musicians, to signify their status in the afterlife. The female dancer with elaborate hairdo held by flower ornaments raises one arm holding her wide sleeve with one hand, while the other lifts her robe to reveal what appears to be a drum underneath her garment, her face smiling, all in a gesture of an entertainer.

Object facts

• Title: Female Figure of a Court Entertainer Dancing (Head)
• Date: 100s CE
• Culture: China, Sichuan province, Eastern Han dynasty (25–220 CE)
• Type: Ceramic
• Technique: Pottery with traces of color pigment
• Dimensions: 60 cm (23 5/8 in.)
• Collection: China - Han Dynasty
• Department: Chinese Art
• Accession number: 2023.98.b

A detail from the museum

The dancer lifts her robe to reveal what appears to be a drum underneath her garment.

Collection credit

Gift of Barbara S. Robinson and Family

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.