This Tang style bronze horse carries the ‘Guan Wu’ mark of a classic high-quality archaistic horse in bronze from the mid to late 1800s.
This horse originates from the Suzhou region. Suzhou foundries in the mid to late 1800s were famous for creating these ‘official grade’ (Guan) pieces for the scholar-official classes and foreign collectors.
It is ‘heavy-walled’, suggesting sand cast or lost wax method with a high copper content.
These high-end workshop pieces sell from a low $800 at general auctions to $3,500 in high end specialised auctions and antique shops of Asian Arts.