Art of East Asia: Neolithic & Bronze Age China
A characteristic artifact from the Yang Shao period is this storage jar
form the Ban-po site. Huge storage jars such as this one were presumably
used for grain or grain wine. They were placed in the grave to accompany
the deceased into the after-life and to provide the necessary sustenance
for his/her well-being in the future. This strong belief in the after life
and the need to provision the deceased continues in Traditional Chinese
culture to the present day, The spiral designs emerging from cowry shell
designs are one of the several characteristic motifs that occur on this
type of ware.
