A large 'eggshell' pottery tankard, Longshan culture, c. 2500-2000 B.C. 龍山文化 蛋殼陶盃

Ronald W. Longsdorf, The Pottery Age: An Appreciation of Neolithic Ceramics from China, Circa 7000 BC - Circa 1000 BC, Hong Kong, 2020, pl. 50.

Ronald W. Longsdorf, 《陶誌：中國新石器時代陶器 約西元前7000年 – 前1000年》，香港，2020年，圖版50

Masterfully and thinly potted, the 'eggshell' pottery tankard testifies to the potter's abilities to strike a superb balance between function and form in the Longshan culture.

Comparable examples are known of this form, such as one illustrated in Changling Lu, Gems of the Cultural Relics of Shandong, Shandong, 1996, no. 50. The current example, however, is arguably a result of the evolution of this design as the details, such as the positioning of the raised lines on the exterior, are ever so slightly different but all work towards contributing to a visually - and practically - more stable and pleasing tankard even to the modern eye.