A rare bronze 'bird', plaque 5th - 4th century BC | 公元前五至四世紀 青銅雙鳥形牌

A nearly identical plaque, perhaps the mate to the present piece, is illustrated in Albert J. Koop, Early Chinese Bronzes, London, 1924, pl. 96a. For related examples, see a bronze appliqué of similarly confronting birds from the Musée Guimet, illustrated in Arte Cinese, Venezia, 1954, cat. no. 154; a bronze belt ornament of two winged birds with similarly grooved detailing, illustrated in Traders and Raiders on China's Northern Frontier, Washington D.C., 1995, cat. no. 84, where the author comments that the style of representation is likely derived from the Western Zhou but adapted to appeal to northern taste; and a leather appliqué of similarly confronting roosters, also dated to the 5th century BC, from Kurgan no. 1, Pazyryk in the Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg (accession no. 1295).