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Clay Toy Tiger

07/22/2013 //
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clay toy

W 130D50xH130mm, China

Clay figurines are a popular toy for adults and childern allover China and could be dated back to over 5000 years.  In the area of  Xu Zhou, clay figurines of dogs, pigs, rooster, duck and even houses were found in Neolithic sites.  The tradition continues and was the most established in the Ming and Qing dynasty more subject matter were covered.  The more natural non coloured version were favored by intellectuals while the mono white and black version are amulet figures.  This figurine being decorated with colour is toy tiger.

Click here to see our other tiger clay toy.

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Categories clay, figurine, toy

Clay Tiger Toy

06/05/2013 //
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Clay Tiger ToyW100xL120xH140mm, China

As the clay toys of Nie Jia Zhuang was selected as the Chinese Intangible Cultural Heritage, it also signified that it is a dyeing art which is in need of protection.  The making of clay toys in the area dated back to the Ming  dynasty, folk song was sung about these colour clay toys.  Up to the 80s, they were ever so popular, every kid would own one.

This roaring tiger, has a leather waist which forms as a bellow to the squeak inside the front half of the body.

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Categories clay, figurine, toy

Tiger Wall Hanger

05/29/2013 //
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Clay wall hangerW200xH250xD50mm, China

This clay wall hanger is the form of a tiger, it offers protection from the evils.  In the rural area of Shaan Xi, before Chinese New Year every household would would be placed a new tiger hanger on the lintel of the door.  The origin of the wall hanger came from the Ground Theatre (Di Xi), find any similarity?

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Categories clay, figurine

Clay Horse

02/26/2013 //
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Clay Horse

H150xL150xW100, China

This sweet little clay horse is by the Hu Xin Min, an artisan who successfully injected new spirits into the traditional craft.

The  Feng Xiang province has a long and  famous for making clay figurines, they are dramatic and bold in patterns, a blessing present for the Chinese New Year, festivals.  The history of Feng Xiang goes back to the Tang dynasty, the first emperor  Zhu Yuan Zhang had the 6th division of his army based in the area.  During peaceful time, these soldiers from the south made clay figurines as a pass time.  Later on, the soldiers settled in the village and named it the 6th division village and the tradition of craft of clay toys started.

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Categories clay, figurine, toy

Owl

09/21/2012 //
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DIA220xH350mm, Thailand

This earthenware is from Dan Kwian, the pottery village in Thailand.  The pottery there is known for its rust like colour which is the result from the high iron oxide content in the clay that were used.  The clay are collected from the nearby Moon River where the Kha tribe used to live, it is believed that they were the original potter of the area.  The style and shape of the pottery has been passed down and even now traditional technique are still used by the potters.

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Categories figurine, pottery

Toad Clay Toy

08/15/2012 //
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L80xW50xH40mm, China

When I was a kid, the boys would go for a toad toy for it being ugly and frightening, something to scare the girls with.  Today, with information from the internet, kids can tell that it is an amphibian of the order anura and probably the particular specie the toy resemble.  In the old days, toad is believed to be one of the 5 poisonous creatures (snake, centipede, scorpion, lizard and toad) that could offer protection to the child.  They can be found on embroidery, prints, toys, etc.

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Categories clay, figurine, toy

God of Longevity – Clay Toy

06/14/2012 //
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L160xW50xH160mm, China

This clay toy is of the god of  longevity who began his legend as Canopus, the brightest star  in the southern constellation of Carina and Argo Navis.  In the Qin dynasty, temples were erected for the worship of  the Canopus star, it is believed that when the star shines brightly the world would be peaceful and vice versa.  Canopus is also known as the “elderly star”, apart from peace, it also upheld the ethic of the respect for the elders.  In the East Han dynasty, the ceremony for Canopus worship consist of a stately banquet that included all the over 70, nobleman and commoners.

Besides the astronomy aspect, the god of longevity also has a human figure, Peng Zu.  Legend has it that Peng Zu has mastered the art of longevity and lived to an age of  767 years old!

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Categories clay, figurine, toy

Horsy Toy

05/24/2012 //
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W60xL160xH100mm, China

Every child seem to have a horsy toy at some stage, whether they are big or small, rocking  or ride able.  This is the Chinese version made with clay and like most of the clay toy it is also a whistle making a horse like sound.  I like this particularly over the other clay toys as it looks half sleepy and totally silly.

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Categories clay, figurine, toy

Chaozhou Wire Puppet

05/23/2012 //
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H500xW150mm, China

This puppet is called a Chaozhou wire puppet, the body of the puppet is supported by a main wire attached to the back of waistline of the puppet while the 2 arms are controlled by 2 wires attached to the waists, hence wire puppet, all the 3 wires are controlled by the puppeteer at the back stage.

There are over 2000 repertoires for the chaozhou wire puppet, these are roughly divided into 3 main themes; adaptation from the southern Chinese opera, local legends and historical stories.  This puppet has the warrior helmet featured in the blog a couple of days ago, a female warrior figure.

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Categories clay, figurine, puppet, wood

Clay Peacock

05/09/2012 //
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W40xL80xH80mm, China

This little clay peacock toy has come to join in the birdy collection.

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Categories clay, figurine, toy
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