Moulding was used extensively and was very lively. Vases were encircled by bands with scenes of animals, birds, human hunters, Taoist fairies in landscapes and mountains.

Han vase with lead glaze and encircling
tigers and mythical beasts -
 courtesy R&G McPherson Antiques

Large Han jar with flying birds - courtesy
Glade Antiques

The latter were linked to the home of the immortals and the five sacred Chinese mountains.

During the Han Dynasty there was a further transition away from artists creating and decorating only ceremonial items, such as pottery, for ritual and religious ceremonies, and instead more was made to glorify the power and prestige of the great families. Now there was also art of a narrative (descriptive) and secular (everyday life) nature. Instead of warding off bad luck, decoration now tells a story, perhaps a myth or folklore. There was also an appreciation of craftsmanship in decorative items for daily use, particularly the brightly painted pottery. The vigour in artistic expression exemplifies the Han period as never before.

Han vase with tiger decoration - courtesy
Glade Antiques

Ceramic roof ridge ornaments had an important role as they had to form the correct transition between the building and the air above it, as well as to protect the inhabitants by warding off evil influences that manifested themselves as demons in the air. The latter was achieved by using figures of deities and symbols of good luck. Human figures also started to appear in roof decoration. Interestingly, the number of ornamental figures on the roof ridges and the colour of the tiles can determine the status of buildings. What was started in the Han Dynasty is particularly clear on the roofs of buildings in the Forbidden City in Beijing, built in the later Ming period.

Figures decorating roofs in Forbidden City

Animals, including dragons, also started to appear on circular roof tiles, stamped in bas-relief. Also many beautiful pagodas were constructed from elaborately impressed, fired ceramic bricks.

China is very large and Regions were relatively autonomous and control often changed hands, so it is no surprise to find that pottery also developed quite separately in some Regions, but that some ideas also travelled and became incorporated into local designs.

Similarly as the borders of “Central China” ebbed and flowed, other bordering dynasties also grew and fell away. One, called the Dian, existed from 400 to 109 BC. It bordered the Han Dynasty in the present Yunnan Province (South Western China just north of Vietnam). It was dependent on agriculture, fishing and trade. The Han considered them barbarians, but they were just as sophisticated. Their pottery was more in the style of South East Asia but also exhibited influences passed down from the Shu (contemporary with the Shang). There was more emphasis on animals in their art (particularly cattle) and illustrations show that bullfighting took place in South China well over 2,000 years ago.

The Han Dynasty eventually fell because of a spate of natural disasters and rebellion, although the art of the Han period continued until the middle of the 3^rd Century AD.