Late Shan Bird Weight (1752 - 1820)

A beautiful Burmese Hamsa standard bronze weight often referred to as a shan duck. The figure has an octagonal base with smal lines around it, a smooth body and a little strutting U-tail. The duck also has very protruding eyes and the figure in general is a bit crooked.

This Hamsa/Shan Duck is part of one of the last released groups of Burmese standard weights. The last group was sent out during during the Konbaung Period (1752 - 1885).

The Burmese Standard weights were produced by official sites appointed by the leader of the country - because of this there were in general very stylistic tendencies throughout the empire of Burma, that was split into 30 Shan states. But this also motivated people to forge their own weights, and cheat.

Even though there are stylistic tendencies one must not forget that the late shan or hamsa weights are more or less a slightly diferent copy of the older Mon ducks and Golden Hamsas.

Sorry for a bit unclear pictures, they will be updated in the future! Otherwise just contact me for pictures or more info on the piece.
Kind Regards,
Theodor Knutzen, Antiqua Gallery

Weight: 5 Tical = 77 Grams

Provenance: Ex. Private Collection, Netherlands.

Culture & Year: Burmese, Approx. 1752 - 1820 AD.

Litterature Reference: Leif Bering Mikkelsen. Opium Weights - Old Animal-shaped Bronze Weights from Southeast Asia. Commercial, ethnic, symbolic and historical perspectives. 2017.

Heigth: 4.2 cm
Length: 2.7 cm
Width: 2.6 cm