Community Corner

Major Chinese Ceramics Are Donated to The Bruce

A Greenwich couple has donated six important examples of Chinese ceramics to The Bruce Museum.


There's always something new to see at The Bruce Museum and this weekend wasn't an exception.

The museum unveiled its latest gift on Friday — six Tang Dynasty ceramics from the collection of Fred and Jane Brooks of Greenwich.

This gift and the promise of additional donations from the collection will help establish The Bruce as an important center for the collecting and study of Chinese antiquities, according to museum officials. Highlights of the gift include a dramatically animated, tri-color glazed ceramic Lokapala, or worldly protector, one of the deities who rule the directions of space according to Hinduism and Vajrayana Buddhism. 

Museum Executive Director Peter Sutton said in a statement, that the Brooks' gift is “an exciting new chapter in the formation of a distinguished permanent collection that reflects all world cultures.” Fred Brooks said that he hoped 
his example would be an inspiration to others, “attracting donations that will distinguish the Bruce as a destination museum for the study of Chinese art.”

All of the donated works date from the Tang Dynasty (618 – 907 A.D.), which is regarded as one of the greatest periods of artistic creativity in China. Also on display are two other colorful Lokapalas that are part of the promised gifts from the Brooks' collection.

In addition to the Lokapala, the gift also includes several ceramic Bactrian camels, some of which are decorated with bright clear glazes and brilliant colors including cobalt blue. The Silk Road between China and the Middle East passed through Bactria and their camels were used to ferry people and goods. Camels were often included as funerary sculpture to ensure that the deceased enjoyed the pleasures of life on earth in the hereafter.

The museum is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., Tuesday through Saturday, and from 1 to 5 p.m., Sunday. Admission is $7 for adults, $6 for students up to 22 years, $6 for seniors and free for members and children less than five years. Individual admission is free on Tuesday. For more information, call (203) 869-0376 or visit the website at www.brucemuseum.org.


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