High dignitary. China, Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) 17th century. Terracotta. Size: 44,5 x 12,5 x 9 cm. Figure of a dignitary made in terracotta, in round bulk. It is a funerary type sculpture, belonging to a rich trousseau. One of its outstanding features is the realistic execution of the figure. he Ming dynasty is one of the longest periods in Chinese history, lasting approximately three centuries. After the Yuan period of foreign domination, the Ming period saw the re-establishment of traditional Chinese values. The seventeen emperors of this dynasty reigned in a state of relative peace and prosperity and belonged to the Han ethnic group (the majority in China), as did the civil service. The economy was transformed from an agrarian to a fully mercantile state at the end of the dynasty.