🐴✨ Happy Lunar New Year! Let’s gallop into the Year of the Horse! ✨🐴  This spirited Tang Dynasty ceramic steed captures the energy and cosmopolitan spirit of ancient China. Notice the vibrant sancai or “three-color” glazing that gives the animal a vivid and dynamic appearance.  The Central Asian rider atop this horse tells a fascinating story of the cosmopolitan Silk Road era when merchants, monks, artists, and travelers from across Asia converged along these ancient trade routes, bringing with them new ideas and traditions.    Unrecorded artist, Horse with Central Asian Rider, Tang Dynasty (618-907)  North China  Earthenware with yellow and brown glazes, 14 1/2 x 12 in.   Gift of Judith and Gerson Leiber, 1992  92.488A,B  #happylunarnewyear #yearofthehorse #nmoa