Skip to main content
Want more images or videos?
Request additional images or videos from the seller
1 of 5

Chinese Green Drip Glaze Headrest, c. 1900

About the Item

By the 18th century, opium use had become as central to Chinese social life as taking tea or smoking tobacco, fostering a subculture rich with its own customs, traditions, and exquisitely crafted accoutrements. This ceramic headrest is one such accessory, used atop a woven daybed to support the head of a lounging smoker. Tall and rigid, the headrest would have been less of a pillow and more of a platform that allowed the inebriated smoker to more comfortably lie on their side and have a view of the opium lamp. Today, the headrest is a beautiful sculptural object, decorated with a coin-shaped cutout and a glassy blue-green glaze that drips down the sides in contrast to the crazed white field.
  • Dimensions:
    Height: 7 in (17.78 cm)Width: 5.25 in (13.34 cm)Depth: 5 in (12.7 cm)
  • Style:
    Qing (Of the Period)
  • Materials and Techniques:
    Ceramic,Glazed
  • Place of Origin:
  • Period:
  • Date of Manufacture:
    circa 1900
  • Condition:
    Wear consistent with age and use.
  • Seller Location:
    Chicago, IL
  • Reference Number:
    Seller: CDKZ0691stDibs: LU820042398672

More From This Seller

View All
Chinese Celadon Glazed Temple Headrest, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
To keep her elaborate hairstyle intact while sleeping, a well-to-do Qing-dynasty woman would use a rigid headrest or neck pillow to keep her head elevated. Whether functional or pure...
Category

Early 20th Century Chinese Qing Ceramics

Materials

Porcelain

Chinese Lucky Girl Headrest, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
To keep her elaborate hairstyle intact while sleeping, a well-to-do Qing-dynasty woman would use a rigid headrest or neck pillow to keep her head elevated. Whether functional or purely decorative, such headrests were crafted from a variety of materials and were often decorated with elaborate patterns or symbolic motifs. This porcelain headrest...
Category

Early 20th Century Chinese Qing Ceramics

Materials

Porcelain

Chinese Ho Ho Boy Headrest, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
To keep her elaborate hairstyle intact while sleeping, a well-to-do Qing-dynasty woman once used this ceramic headrest as a pillow. This headrest is shaped in the form of a baby boy,...
Category

Early 20th Century Chinese Qing Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

Chinese Brown Drip Glaze Vessel, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
Tracing its roots back into the Han dynasty, this early 20th-century vessel emulates the full-bodied shapes and unusual glazing found in ancient ceramics...
Category

Early 20th Century Chinese Qing Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

Chinese Drip Glaze Kitchen Jar, circa 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
Coated inside and out with a rich drip glaze, this early 20th century jar was originally used for storing foods and condiments in a Provincial Chinese kitchen. The wide-mouth jar has...
Category

Early 20th Century Chinese Qing Ceramics

Materials

Earthenware

Chinese Sancai Peony Headrest, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
To keep her elaborate hairstyle intact while sleeping, a well-to-do Qing-dynasty woman once used this ceramic headrest as a pillow. Its unusual form is densely patterned with abstrac...
Category

Antique Late 19th Century Chinese Qing Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

You May Also Like

Chinese Ceramic Headrest
Located in Vosselaar, BE
A Chinese unglazed ceramic headrest with lovely patina and naieve carvings on both sides. ONe geometrical and one of a fantasy beast (griffion?). These headrests are found in difform...
Category

Antique Early 19th Century Chinese Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

Chinese Green Glazed Jar / Planter, c. 1900
Located in Jimbaran, Bali
A wonderful blue-green glaze adorns this early 20th Century Chinese storage jar along with a stunning crackled finish. Jars such as these would be used to store grains amid people's ...
Category

Early 20th Century Chinese Qing Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

Chinese Shiwan Green Glazed Ceramic Jar / Planter, c. 1900
Located in Jimbaran, Bali
A wonderful green glaze typical of Chinese "Shiwan" pottery adorns this early 20th Century Chinese storage jar. Shiwan ware is a style of Chinese pottery from the Shiwanzhen district...
Category

Early 20th Century Chinese Qing Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

Chinese Shiwan Green Glazed Ceramic Jar / Planter, c. 1900
Located in Jimbaran, Bali
A wonderful green glaze typical of Chinese "Shiwan" pottery adorns this early 20th century Chinese storage jar. Shiwan ware is a style of Chinese pottery from the Shiwanzhen district...
Category

Early 20th Century Chinese Qing Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

Chinese Shiwan Green Glazed Ceramic Jar / Planter, c. 1900
Located in Jimbaran, Bali
A wonderful green glaze typical of Chinese "Shiwan" pottery adorns this early 20th Century Chinese storage jar. The jar likely occupied a private home to store grains or other househ...
Category

Early 20th Century Chinese Qing Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

Chinese Shiwan Green Glazed Ceramic Jar / Planter, c. 1900
Located in Jimbaran, Bali
A wonderful green glaze typical of Chinese "Shiwan" pottery adorns this early 20th Century Chinese storage jar. The jar likely occupied a private home to store grains or other househ...
Category

Early 20th Century Chinese Qing Ceramics

Materials

Ceramic

Recently Viewed

View All