MICHAEL WOERNER 2018 Oriental Art (CULTURES Brussels)

All the more exciting because of its rarity is this previously unpublished, comparatively large and almost
perfectly preserved footed bowl which is painted on its inside with six large human figures. In style and
color scheme the figures are reminiscent of early cave paintings in central and northeastern Thailand.
In striking contrast to the painted interior, the outside of the bowl is the epitome of simplicity: with the
exception of a small red wavy line below the rim the only décor consists of irregular tiny grooves in the
surface, possibly from a wooden or clay paddle. The attractive color variations on the outside, ranging
from a light cream to a dark grey, are mere chance creations of the firing.
A jar fragment, of which the whereabouts are unfortunately unknown, depicts a very similar decorative
pattern - the only known parallel.
1
Chin You-Di, Ban Chiang Prehistoric Cultures (Bangkok: Fine Arts Department, 1975), fig. 21.
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