Antiquities Exhibits

Naturalistic Zun bronze wine vessel in the shape of an owl, 13th-12th century BCE, China at the Minneapolis Institute of Art in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Zun is a type of bronze wine vessel used by Shang-dynasty (c. 1600–1046 BCE) aristocrats during ritual ceremonies to honor their ancestors. This owl-shaped zun is divided into two sections: the removable owl’ s-head lid and the bird’s hollow body. Vessels shaped like animals constitute virtually the only bronze sculpture known from the Shang period. Besides this owl, vessels in the form of buffalo, boars, rhinoceroses, elephants, and rams have also survived. This owl is one of the oldest and most naturalistic of the few remaining owl-shaped zun. Its form exhibits the influence of the Shang capital, Anyang, in the North, but the style and casting technique of the vessel (the indentation on the interior walls corresponds to a relief found on the exterior) indicate that it is related to the bronze tradition of the middle Yangzi region in...

Arts of Africa and the Americas. Ongoing. At the Minneapolis Institute of Art. Minneapolis, Minnesota Bronze Graeco-Egyptian sculpture of a Ptolemaic ruler in the guise of Herakles 2nd century BCE. Image courtesy of the Minneapolis Institute of Art in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The Arts of Africa and the Americas Department is dedicated to the immense creativity of Native peoples across the world, from prehistory to the present. The collection has grown significantly since the department was founded more than 30 years ago, and now numbers more than 5,500 objects, including masterworks of sculpture, ceram ics, textiles, metalsmithing, painting, basketry, and bead, shell, and quillwork, reflecting the diversity of these regions and cultures.