Candy pellet bottle in shape of eggplant

Detail of a pattern
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At A Glance

  • Period

    1827-1843
  • Geography

    Kyoto, Kyoto prefecture, Japan
  • Material

    Stoneware with gold leaf under enamel glazes; paper-covered stopper
  • Dimension

    H x W x D: 7.7 x 6.8 x 6.8 cm (3 1/16 x 2 11/16 x 2 11/16 in)
  • Accession Number

    F1906.33a-b
  • EDAN ID

    edanmdm:fsg_F1906.33a-b

Object Details

  • Artist

    Eiraku Hozen 永楽保全 (1795-1854)
  • Description

    Candy pellet container (furidashi) in shape of eggplant, with mantle of leaves in low relief. Paper-covered stopper.
    Clay: hard, dense, buff Kyoto-type pottery.
    Glaze: outside - lower body in brilliant enamel glaze, dark purple; upper body in brilliant autumn-red lacquer and gold leaf. Inside - clear, crackled.
    Seal: Eiraku.
  • Marks

    Eiraku
  • Label

    The Kyoto potter Eiraku Hozen was particularly inspired in his use of enamel glazes in clear tones of turquoise, green, yellow, and purple, in the manner of late Ming Chinese pottery from the Zhangzhou kilns in Fujian province that the Japanese called Kochi ware. Hozen's skill was sought by the Tokugawa clan of Kii province, for whom he established a kiln, and from whom he received a set of gold and silver seals with which to mark his work. This charming small vessel substitutes a vegetal shape for the usual ceramic one. The eggplant leaves are rendered in gold leaf under a veil of translucent red lacquer. Hozen pioneered the use of this continental technique in Japan.
  • Collection

    Freer Gallery of Art Collection
  • Exhibition History

    Kyoto Ceramics (November 9, 1984 to April 25, 1985)
  • Origin

    Kyoto, Kyoto prefecture, Japan
  • Credit Line

    Gift of Charles Lang Freer
  • Type

    Vessel
  • Restrictions and Rights

    Usage Conditions Apply

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