Chinese Porcelain Camel in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, August 2007

Figure of a Camel
Tang Dynasty, late 7th- first half of the 8th century
Earthenware with three-color (sancai) glaze

Accession # 1991.253.13

Although the camel is not native to China, representations of the two-humped Central Asian camel are frequently found in Chinese ceramic tomb sculpture. This pack animal was an indispensible carrier of goods on the Silk Road that linked China with the regions to her west. In all likelihood, the demonic masks that dominate the load of the camel here were intended to ward off evil.

Text from the Metropolitan Museum of Art label.