Yuko ware tea ceremony water jar

Detail of a pattern
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At A Glance

  • Period

    19th century
  • Geography

    Shiga prefecture, Japan
  • Material

    Earthenware with white slip under lead glaze; lacquer lid
  • Dimension

    H x Diam: 14.5 × 15.5 cm (5 11/16 × 6 1/8 in)
  • Accession Number

    F1898.490a-b
  • EDAN ID

    edanmdm:fsg_F1898.490a-b

Object Details

  • Description

    Ovoid, on rounded foot. Black lacquer cover.
    Clay: soft, dense, brownish. Earthenware.
    Glaze: rich reddish and yellowish-brown, heavily clouded in black over thin brown wash. Amber-tinted lead glaze over white slip (which appears dark orange) on shoulder. Five circles, evenly spaced in horizontal row along midpoint of body, where glaze perhaps crawled, or possibly created intentionally by wiping off glaze before firing--a trail of silvery iron crystals runs beneath eath circle. Three spur marks on base; three spur marks inside on bottom.
    Mark: Yuko [Jpn] inside oval frame.
  • Marks

    Mark: Yuko [Jpn] inside oval frame.
  • Provenance

    To 1898
    Yamanaka & Company, New York to 1898 [1]
    From 1898 to 1919
    Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Yamanaka & Company in 1898 [2]
    From 1920
    Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]
    Notes:
    [1] See Original Pottery List, L. 126, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives.
    [2] See note 1.
    [3] The original deed of Charles Lang Freer's gift was signed in 1906. The collection was received in 1920 upon the completion of the Freer Gallery.
  • Collection

    Freer Gallery of Art Collection
  • Previous custodian or owner

    Yamanaka and Co. 山中商会 (1917-1965) (C.L. Freer source)
    Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919)
  • Origin

    Shiga prefecture, Japan
  • Credit Line

    Gift of Charles Lang Freer
  • Type

    Vessel
  • Restrictions and Rights

    Usage Conditions Apply

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