The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 13, 2025

Rhyton

c. late 600s–early 700s

Central Asia or Tibet

(Sogdiana)
silver with gilded foil
Overall: 30.5 cm (12 in.);
Gift of Mrs. Clara Taplin Rankin 1988.67.3
Location: Not on view

Did You Know?

This drinking horn was a communal vessel which guests would pass around to share wine at parties.

Description

The form of the animal-headed rhyton as a drinking vessel and the use of silver are evidence of cultural exchange with Persia, while the lush, luxurious quality of the design and the form of the lions and curling dragon on one side of the decanter reveal an awareness of Chinese forms. Poured into the large opening at the top of the horn, wine then flowed out through the small tube held between the parted lips of a bovine-like animal. To keep from spilling, drinkers could stop the flow of the liquid by holding a thumb over the lower aperture.
  • ?–1988
    (David Tremayne, Ltd., London, United Kingdom, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art, as gift from Mrs. Clara Taplin Rankin)
    1988–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • “The Year in Review for 1988.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 76, no. 2 (February 1989): 30–75. Mentioned: cat. no. 231–233, p. 75; Reproduced: cat. no. 231–233, p. 51 www.jstor.org
    Czuma, Stan. "Museum Acquisitions and Notes." Bulletin of the Asia Institute vol. 5 (1991), 190. Mentioned and Reproduced: p. 190
    “Recent Acquisitions at the Cleveland Museum of Art II: Departments of Asian Art: Supplement.” The Burlington Magazine 133, no. 1059 (June 1991): 417–424. Reproduced: p. 419, fig. VIII www.jstor.org
    Czuma, Stanislaw J. "Some Tibetan and Tibet-Related Acquisitions of the Cleveland Museum of Art." Oriental Art, winter 1992/3, vol. 38, no. 4. Mentioned: p. 231; Reproduced: p. 232.
    Czuma, Stan. "Tibetan Silver Vessels." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 80, no. 4 (April 1993): 131–135. Reproduced: p. 134; Mentioned: pp. 131–135 www.jstor.org
    Carter, Martha L. "Three Silver Vessels from Tibet's Earliest Historical Era: A Preliminary Study." Cleveland Studies in the History of Art 3 (1998) 22-47. Mentioned and Reproduced: pp. 22-31, figs. 1-9c www.jstor.org
    Heller, Amy. Tibetan Art: Tracing the Development of Spiritual Ideals and Art in Tibet, 600-2000 A.D. Milano, Italy; Woodbridge, England: Jaca Book; Antique Collectors’ Club, 1999. Mentioned and Reproduced: pp. 8 and 11, pls. 3, 4, 13, and 14.
    Christman, Bruce. "Three Gilded Tibetan Vessels." In Gilded Metals: History, Technology and Conservation. Terry Drayman-Weisser, ed. London: Archetype Publications Ltd. in association with the American Institute of Conservation of Historic and Artistic Works, 2000. Reproduced: fig. 10.1, p. 169; fig. 10.3, p. 172
    "Silk Road Art and Archaeology." Silk Road art and archaeology: journal of the Institute of Silk Road Studies, Kamakura, vol. 9 (2003). Reproduced: fig. 17, p. 224
    Huo, Wei. “A Study of Ancient Tibetan Gold and Silver Ware.” Chinese Archaeology 12, no. 1 (November 2012): 165–74. doi:10.1515/char-2012-0020.
    Heller, Amy. “Tibetan Inscriptions on Ancient silver and gold Vessels and Artefacts.” Journal of the International Association for Bon Research, vol 1. (2013). Mentioned: footnote 38, p. 274; pp. 276–8. Reproduced: p. 277.
    Cleveland Museum of Art. The CMA Companion: A Guide to the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2014. Mentioned and reproduced: P. 216
    Kosmin, Paul. "Banqueting on the Move." In Animal-Shaped Vessels from the Ancient World: Feasting with Gods, Heroes, and Kings. Susanne Ebbinghaus, ed., 310-341. Cambridge, MA: Harvard Art Museums, 2018. Mentioned: p. 338, p. 384, cat. no. 62
    Debreczeny, Karl. Faith and Empire: Art and Politics in Tibetan Buddhism. New York, NY: Rubin Museum of Art, 2019. Reproduced: fig. 3.5, pp. 8-9 and p. 76
    Pritzker, David Thomas and Wang Xudong 王旭东, editors. Cultural Exchange along the Silk Road: Masterpieces of the Tubo Period (7th-9th Century) = 丝绸之路上的文化交流 : 吐蕃时期艺术珍品. Beijing: 中国藏学出版社 [China Tibetology Publishing House], 2020. Reproduced: p. 15, p. 31 (vase only)
    Heller, Amy. “Silver Jug: Ceremonial Banquet Vessels in Silver and Gold,” Project Himalayan Art, Rubin Museum of Art, 2023, https://rubinmuseum.org/projecthimalayanart/essays/silver-jug/. rubinmuseum.org
    Heller, Amy. “Silver Jug: Ceremonial Banquet Vessels in Silver and Gold.” Project Himalayan Art, Rubin Museum of Art, 2023. Reproduced: fig. 5 and fig. 6 (cup only) rubinmuseum.org
  • A Moveable Feast: Food Cultures in China. Hong Kong Palace Museum Limited, Hong Kong, Hong Kong (organizer) (March 19-June 18, 2025).
    Faith and Empire: Art and Politics in Tibetan Buddhism. Rubin Museum of Art, New York, NY (organizer) (February 1-July 15, 2019).
    Animal-Shaped Vessels from the Ancient World: Feasting with Gods, Heroes, and Kings. Harvard Art Museums, Cambridge, MA (organizer) (September 7, 2018-January 6, 2019).
    Traveling the Silk Road: Ancient Pathway to the Modern World. American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY (organizer) (November 11, 2009-August 15, 2010).
    Selections from the Tibetan Collection (Galleries 103–104). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (1993).
    Object Lessons: Cleveland Creates an Art Museum. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 7-September 8, 1991).
    The Year in Review for 1988. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (March 1-May 14, 1989).
  • {{cite web|title=Rhyton|url=false|author=|year=c. late 600s–early 700s|access-date=13 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1988.67.3