Hagi ware tea bowl in the shape of a brush washer

Detail of a pattern
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At A Glance

  • Period

    17th century
  • Geography

    Matsumoto kilns, Hagi, Yamaguchi prefecture, Japan
  • Material

    Stoneware with rice-straw-ash glaze
  • Dimension

    H x Diam: 8.5 × 13.8 cm (3 3/8 × 5 7/16 in)
  • Accession Number

    F1901.154
  • EDAN ID

    edanmdm:fsg_F1901.154

Object Details

  • Description

    Tea bowl in shape of brush washer (hissengata chawan [Jpn]) heavy, rough foot, spiral carved inside footring.
    Clay: coarse, with inclusions; light brown, appearing red-orange under glaze.
    Glaze: brilliant, cream, crackled.
  • Provenance

    To 1901
    Yamanaka & Company, to 1901 [1]
    From 1901 to 1919
    Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Yamanaka & Company in 1901 [2]
    From 1920
    Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]
    Notes:
    [1] See Original Pottery List, L. 1055, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives. The majority of Charles Lang Freer’s purchases from Yamanaka & Company were made at its New York branch. Yamanaka & Company maintained branch offices, at various times, in Boston, Chicago, London, Peking, Shanghai, Osaka, Nara, and Kyoto. During the summer, the company also maintained seasonal locations in Newport, Bar Harbor, and Atlantic City.
    [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

    Cornucopia: Ceramics of Southern Japan (December 19, 2009 to January 9, 2011)
    Freer and Tea: 100 Years of The Book of Tea (November 19, 2005 to May 29, 2006)
    Japanese Art (November 7, 1986 to July 19, 1988)
  • Previous custodian or owner

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

    Matsumoto kilns, Hagi, Yamaguchi prefecture, Japan
  • Credit Line

    Gift of Charles Lang Freer
  • Type

    Vessel
  • Restrictions and Rights

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