Kyoto ware tea-ceremony water in Takatori style, with false seal of Ninsei

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At A Glance

  • Period

    19th century
  • Geography

    Kyoto, Kyoto prefecture, Japan
  • Material

    Stoneware with iron, wood-ash, and rice-straw-ash glazes; lacquered wooden lid
  • Dimension

    H x Diam: 15.7 x 13.5 cm (6 3/16 x 5 5/16 in)
  • Accession Number

    F1899.101a-b
  • EDAN ID

    edanmdm:fsg_F1899.101a-b

Object Details

  • Artist

    False seal of Nonomura Ninsei (active ca. 1646-77)
  • Description

    Tea-ceremony water jar. Black lacquer cover.
    Clay: hard, dense, grayish; orange sheen on exposed surface.
    Glaze: eccentric mingled splashes of yellow, olive, gray, blue, and bluish-white over red-brown wash.
    Mark: Ninsei [Jpn], very large, without frame, stamped on base to left.
  • Marks

    Ninsei [Jpn], very large, without frame, stamped on base to left.
  • Provenance

    To 1899
    Japanese Trading Company, New York to 1899 [1]
    From 1899 to 1919
    Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Japanese Trading Company in 1899 [2]
    From 1920
    Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]
    Notes:
    [1] See Original Pottery List, L. 169, 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

    Japanese Trading Company (C.L. Freer source)
    Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919)
  • Origin

    Kyoto, Kyoto prefecture, Japan
  • Credit Line

    Gift of Charles Lang Freer
  • Type

    Vessel
  • Restrictions and Rights

    Usage Conditions Apply

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