Bowl with inlaid design of three phoenixes and peony ground

Object Details

• Description

  Bowl, broad ovoidal; low, heavy foot; four spur marks on foot; three inside of the bowl. Several restorations with brown lacquer.

  Clay: hard, sonant.

  Glaze: dark gray with variable brownish and greenish tints. Partially ground off on exterior wall.

  Decoration: inlaid in white and black under glaze. Inside: three phoenixes and scattered blossoms, lotus-petal medallion. Outside: three small floral medallions.

  Spurs: black clay spurs, three in bottom and four on foot rim.

• Provenance

  To 1904

  Yamanaka & Company, to 1904 [1]

  From 1904 to 1919

  Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Yamanaka & Company in 1904 [2]

  From 1920

  Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]

  Notes:

  [1] Undated folder sheet note. See Original Pottery List, L. 1294, 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

  Cranes and Clouds: The Korean Art of Ceramic Inlay (November 5, 2011 to January 3, 2016)

• Previous custodian or owner

  Yamanaka and Co. 山中商会 (1917-1965) (C.L. Freer source)

  Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919)

• Origin

  Gangjin kilns, Sadang-ri kiln no. 10, Jeollanam-do province, Korea

• Credit Line

  Gift of Charles Lang Freer

• Type

  Vessel

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1300s

• Name

  Freer, Charles Lang, Yamanaka and Co.

• Place

  Gangjin kilns, Sadang-ri kiln no. 10, Jeollanam-do province, Korea

• Topic

  Goryeo period (918 - 1392), Charles Lang Freer collection, Art, Inlay (process), Lacquer repair, Green glaze, Stoneware, Lacquer, Korean Art, Phoenix, Ceramics, Flowers

• Culture

  Koreans

• Object Type

  Vessels (containers)