Tea caddy, bunrin type

Detail of a pattern
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At A Glance

  • Period

    17th century
  • Geography

    Kyoto, Kyoto prefecture, Japan
  • Material

    Earthenware with Black Raku and green glazes; ivory lid
  • Dimension

    H x Diam (assembled): 5.9 × 6.5 cm (2 5/16 × 2 9/16 in)
  • Accession Number

    F1900.104a-b
  • EDAN ID

    edanmdm:fsg_F1900.104a-b

Object Details

  • Artist

    Attributed to Raku Ichinyu (1640-1696)
  • Description

    Tea caddy, bunrin shape (bunrin chaire [Jpn]). Ivory cover.
    Clay: light-weight, grayish-white. Raku type. Wheel thrown.
    Glaze: brilliant black and red over thin gray-brown wash; inlaid "drip" of greenish-yellow. Black Raku glaze.
  • Label

    This round jar replicates a Chinese tea caddy form known as “apple.” When acquired, the unmarked jar was attributed to Ichinyu (1640–1696), fourth head of the Raku workshop. Alternatively, it may be a product of the mysterious Oshikoji workshop, also in Kyoto, which during the seventeenth century made lead-glazed earthenware using technology introduced from China. Few Oshikoji wares have been identified, although the name appears in reliable documents.
  • Provenance

    To 1900
    Kano Oshima, to 1900 [1]
    From 1900 to 1919
    Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Kano Oshima in 1900 [2]
    From 1920
    Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]
    Notes:
    [1] See Original Pottery List, L. 835, 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
  • Exhibition History

    Freer and Tea II: Raku, Hagi, Karatsu (July 8, 2006 to January 1, 2007)
  • Previous custodian or owner

    Kano Oshima (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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