This green-glazed model storehouse for grain served as burial ware or ‘mingqi'. Raised above the ground, the model is of simple slab construction with moulded elements added on. On the upper level is an overhanging gable rooft, symmetrically placed openings and a projecting balcony with moulded railings and a central lattice-work panel. The front feet are in the shape of bears positioned as guardians at each corner of the granary. The glaze has degraded to a pale-greenish colour on the roof's front and at the front and side of the model.The practice of using lead-glazed burial wares had already started during the Han dynasty (206 BCE-220 CE) and it continued into the Ming period (1368-1644). The custom of burying objects with the deceased stems from the belief in life after death.
