Groom

618

907

44.6

9

HKU.C.1993.0990

The term “groom” is used to describe this middle-aged male figure as it was found alongside ceramic glazed horses. The outstretched arm presumably held the reigns off the horse. The figure was painted over using only three different colors, being brown, dark green, and creamy off-white. Other similar figures with the same color palette have been identified as the sancai (Tri-Color). Their heads and bodies are made separately using low-fired clay, after which they are sealed together and glazed over. Areas on the body where the glaze has chipped off, reveals the clay firing process underneath. Grooms are unique in the sense that their clothing and facial features are not Chinese but those of Central Asia. Nearby Turkic kingdoms would send their men with animals such as horses and camels for the Tang emperor as tributes for prosperous trade.

These earthenware figures were funeral objects, and they were unearthed within the Tombs of high-ranking officials in the Tang Dynasty (618CE-907CE). The appearance and number of figures in a tomb depended on the status of the individual. A standard tomb contained figures of civil officials, warriors, servants etc. The belief was that the deceased could carry their earthy possessions and enjoy them in the afterlife. The sancai were to appear to protect and serve the deceased high-ranking official as they would in real life. Larger figures such as Guardian Gods were likely used to protect the spirit of the deceased and ward off tomb raiders.