Suspension Bell (bo) with Design of Coiled Venomous Serpents
- Culture
- Chinese
- Date
- early 6th century BCE
- Material
- Bronze
- associated with
- Henan province, China, Asia
- Classification
- Metalwork, musical instruments
- Collection
- Asian Art
- Current Location
- On View, Gallery 233
- Dimensions
- height: 10 1/4 in. (26 cm)
width of flat top of bell: 6 1/2 in. (16.5 cm)
depth of flat top of bell: 4 5/8 in. (11.7 cm)
width of bottom of bell: 7 1/8 in. (18.1 cm)
depth of bottom of bell: 5 1/8 in. (13 cm)
weight: 8 lb. 12 oz. (4 kg) - Credit Line
- Gift of J. Lionberger Davis
- Rights
- Public Domain
- Object Number
- 61:1953
NOTES
Each side of this bell is decorated with 18 coiled snake bosses. The suspension loop handle is supported by two animals with peering heads whose body contours are filled with decorative rounded points. The top, center panels, framing bands, and bottom register all carry interlocked bodies of coiled, venomous serpents. The interior of the bell reveals two gouges from rim to top that help tune the bell to produce a middle note of G4 and a side note of B4.
This bell was part of a larger set. An identical piece is in the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, while a smaller one with the same design and decoration is housed in the Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology at the University of Oxford, England.
This bell was part of a larger set. An identical piece is in the Minneapolis Institute of Arts, while a smaller one with the same design and decoration is housed in the Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology at the University of Oxford, England.
We regularly update records, which may be incomplete. If you have additional information, please contact us at provenance@slam.org.