Earth Beneath Our Feet: Incense Burner #3

Copied Harlan W. Butt, Earth Beneath Our Feet: Incense Burner #3, 2000, silver, brass, and enamel, 4 3⁄8 x 6 5⁄8 in. (11.1 x 16.7 cm) diam., Smithsonian American Art Museum, Gift of the Midwest Enamelist Guild, 2000.45A-B

Artwork Details

Title
Earth Beneath Our Feet: Incense Burner #3
Artist
Date
2000
Location
Not on view
Dimensions
4 3⁄8 x 6 5⁄8 in. (11.1 x 16.7 cm) diam.
Credit Line
Gift of the Midwest Enamelist Guild
Mediums
Mediums Description
silver, brass, and enamel
Classifications
Subjects
  • Animal — amphibian — frog
  • Animal — reptile — snake
  • Landscape — plant — water lily
Object Number
2000.45A-B
Linked Open Data
https://edan.si.edu/saam/id/object/2000.45A-B

Artwork Description

This incense burner, or censer, depicts a dramatic moment in a small corner of nature. An incantation on the edge of the lid reads "devour, transformation, metamorphosis." It refers to the fate of the frog about to be taken by the snake in an act that will transform both creatures. The rich enameling on the body of the censer replicates the hypnotic array of scales on the snake's skin, and calls our attention to the beautiful and the terrifying in nature's cycles.