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Pillow in the Shape of a Twin-Headed Bird

Eastern Han dynasty (25–220)

Not on view

Stuffed with plant stalks, this pillow features a pattern of stylized birds and beasts. Interspersed are Chinese characters reading, “extend years, increase longevity, and benefit sons and grandsons.” The two tips forming bird’s heads have led to the pillow’s identification as a “rooster-crowing pillow” (jimingzhen), a burial item intended to carry the deceased into heaven, but no historical texts of the period can corroborate the term. The two-headed form more likely represents a mythical bird than an actual rooster.

Pillow in the Shape of a Twin-Headed Bird, Woven silk jin (warp-faced compound plain weave), two amber beads, China — Due to rights restrictions, this image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

东汉 “延年益寿大宜子孙” 铭锦枕

Title: Pillow in the Shape of a Twin-Headed Bird

Period: Eastern Han dynasty (25–220)

Culture: China

Medium: Woven silk jin (warp-faced compound plain weave), two amber beads

Dimensions: H. 6 in.. (15.2 cm): W. 19 in. (48.3 cm): D. 3 3/4 in. (9.5 cm)

Classification: Textiles-Brocades

Credit Line: Lent by Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Museum

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Asian Art at The Met

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world.