Set of Bells with Diamond-Shaped Insignia (300s–100s BCE): Art, History and Details

Set of Bells with Diamond-Shaped Insignia (300s–100s BCE) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection.

The work and its context

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

These rare, elegant bronze bells were made in a tribal village along the southern borders of China. They differ greatly from bells made in the central regions, which often come in large sets and in varying sizes, and feature complex decorative patterns. The distinctive shape of these bells resembles a tall helmet topped by a pair of horns. A rope may have been tied around the horns so that the bells could be suspended. Each bell is decorated with a diamond-shaped insignia—probably to mark tribal affiliation. Although the bells are identical in size, each produces a different tone, which indicates that their casting was a highly refined process.

Object facts

• Title: Set of Bells with Diamond-Shaped Insignia
• Date: 300s–100s BCE
• Culture: China, along the southern borders, Eastern Zhou dynasty (770–256 BCE) to Han dynasty (202 BCE–220 CE)
• Type: Metalwork
• Technique: bronze
• Dimensions: Overall: 24.1 cm (9 1/2 in.)
• Collection: China - Zhou Dynasty
• Department: Chinese Art
• Accession number: 1998.77

A detail from the museum

These bells were struck from the outside to produce musical tones, instead of having an interior clapper.

Collection credit

The Severance and Greta Millikin Purchase Fund

Further reading listed by the museum

• "The Power of Form" Kaikodo Journal. vol. VII (Spring 1998) pp. 62–283

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.