A VERY LARGE AND RARE BLACK POTTERY AMPHORA WITH APPLIED GILT-BRONZE BOSSES, LIFAN, HAN DYNASTYScientific Analysis Report: A thermoluminescence analysis report issued by Oxford Authentication on 4 May 2022, based on sample number C122d90, sets the firing date of two samples taken at between 1500 and 2400 years ago. A copy of the report, issued by Oxford Authentication, apanies this lot. A copy of an associated report from Antiques Analytics, Institute for Scientific Authenticity Testing, dated 4 May 2022, written and signed by Dr. Robert Neunteufel, apanies this lot.China, 202 BC to 220 AD. Heavily potted, the lozenge-form mouth rim tapering to form two wide strap handles above the neck with a finely incised and red-painted striated band to either side, the interior mouth with red paint as well. The ovoid body centered by spiral designs. Applied overall with conical metal bosses with beaded decoration.Provenance: From the private collection of Dr. Rudolf Leopold, and thence by descent. Dr. Rudolf Leopold (1925-2010) was an Austrian physician and important collector of art. He was born in Vienna and started actively collecting in the mid-1950s, with an early and major focus being works by Egon Schiele, whose paintings were available inexpensively at the time. Leopold acquired a catalog of Schiele's work in 1950 and became enamored with the artist's work, despite the fact that he was distinctly out of fashion. Pieces that he bought for little money would later be worth millions. Other Austrian artists he collected included Gustav Klimt and Oskar Kokoschka. A substantial part of his collection, numbering around 5,000 works of art, was purchased by the Republic of Austria and used as the foundation to create the Leopold Museum, of which the collector was made a director for life. Dr. Rudolf Leopold was also a passionate collector of Chinese works of art.Condition: Very good condition,mensurate with age. Old wear, minor firing cracks and other irregularities, small nicks here and there, the bosses with malachite and cuprite encrustations, drilled holes from sample-taking, some old repairs and minor touch, all exactly as expected from an authentic piece with this age.Weight: 15.8 kgDimensions:Height 58.5 cmThe surface of the vessel has been shaped with tools and then burnished. This process of manufacture gives the jar its attractively rugged, yet carefully detailed and distinctive characteristics. The surface of the body is an amalgamation ofplex curves with various convex and concave shapes.This type of black earthenware amphora was produced from the Warring States period and throughout the Han dynasty. It is assumed that the largest versions of these vessels, sumptuously embellished with gilt bronze bosses, were made during the pinnacle of this era, e.g. during the first half of the Han dynasty. As noted by Regina Krahl in Yuegutang, A Collection of Chinese Ceramics in