Dou ritual vessel

Ritual urn, Tou form; two ring handles attached to body of vessel with an elephant head (?) motif. Trumpet base, truncated trumpet finial. The bronze was lightly covered with silver before being washed with gold. Gold has worn off in spots revealing silver green iridescence; corrosion advanced to such a stage that handles have become attached to body of urn. Tou belong to the yi class, and were used to contain grain offered to the dead. Excavated, with other objects, rom a tomb in Honan, 1929. N.B.similar piece in Grenville Winthrop Collection, New York