Images

A lacquered box of the Eastern Han Dynasty, China. 25-220 CE. (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)

A red and black lacquered bowl from the Western Han Dynasty, China. 206 BCE - 9 CE. (Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York)

A Chinese lacquered coffin with dragon and bird decoration from the Chu state. 4th century BCE. (Hubei Provincial Museum, Wuhan, China)

Papyrus Moscow 120, page 2, c. 1090-1075 BCE Held in the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts. Image source: M. Коростовцев: Путeшecтвиe Ун-Амуна в Библ. 1960

Papyrus Moscow 120, page 1 Held in the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts. Image source: M. Коростовцев: Путeшecтвиe Ун-Амуна в Библ. 1960

This relief of a male holding a bird is from the 5th century BCE, found in modern day western Turkey near the ancient city of Thyatira. Thyatira was named such by Seleucos I Nicator around 290 BCE but prior to that...

This tablet (tabular) dates to the 2nd century BCE and the ancient city of Thyatira. Thyatira was once a Lydian city, on the border of Lydia and Mysia, but at times was under the control of the Persians, and then the generals...

A Chinese miniature jade mask. 2nd millennium BCE. Height: 4 cm. (British Museum, London)

A Chinese jade plaque of a cormorant and fish. 1100-900 BCE. Height: 4 cm. (British Museum, London)

A Chinese cong of jade, a ritual object commonly found in tombs but of unknown function. Unknown date but probably Neolithic. Height: 12.9 cm. (British Museum, London)