Dish

Object Details

• Description

  Large shallow dish with plain rim, brown lip.

  Clay: white porcelain.

  Glaze: transparent. (Three spur marks surrounding mark on base).

  Decoration: overglaze enamels, "tortoise shell" pattern; two patterns frame birds and flowers, one a lion and peonies. Outside: scrolls and lei-wen in underglaze blue.

  Mark: underglaze blue in double square, within large double ring.

• Marks

  underglaze blue in double square, within large double ring.

• Label

  This dish is a classic example of the Old Kutani style of porcelain decoration used at kilns in Arita in the mid-seventeenth century. Translucent enamels in dark tones cover much of the surface of the vessel. Within an overall geometric grid, smaller geometric patterns fill concentric bands of contrasting colors. Three six-sided bands frame bird-and-flower motifs inspired by Chinese painting.

• Provenance

  To 1968

  Yamanaka and Company, Osaka, Japan. [1]

  From 1968

  Freer Gallery of Art, purchased from Yamanaka and Company, Osaka, Japan. [2]

  Notes:

  [1] Curatorial Remark 1 in the object record.

  [2] See note 1.

• Collection

  Freer Gallery of Art Collection

• Exhibition History

  Cornucopia: Ceramics of Southern Japan (December 19, 2009 to January 9, 2011)

  Kutani-style Porcelain from the Collection of Gallaudet University (June 30 to August 11, 2002)

  Summer Whites: Japanese Porcelain (July 1, 1983 to March 15, 1984)

  Japanese Ceramics (June 22, 1982 to September 27, 1982)

  Japanese Ceramics (April 11, 1978 to January 17, 1980)

  Japanese Art (October 2, 1975 to October 8, 1976)

  Japanese Ukiyo-e Painting (May 2, 1973 to July 1, 1974)

  Japanese Art: Recent Accessions (June 27, 1972 to May 2, 1973)

• Previous custodian or owner

  Yamanaka and Co. 山中商会 (1917-1965)

• Origin

  Yambeta kiln group, Arita, Saga prefecture, Japan

• Credit Line

  Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment

• Type

  Vessel

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

  There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.

  The information presented on this website may be revised and updated at any time as ongoing research progresses or as otherwise warranted. Pending any such revisions and updates, information on this site may be incomplete or inaccurate or may contain typographical errors. Neither the Smithsonian nor its regents, officers, employees, or agents make any representations about the accuracy, reliability, completeness, or timeliness of the information on the site. Use this site and the information provided on it subject to your own judgment. The National Museum of Asian Art welcomes information that would augment or clarify the ownership history of objects in their collections.

Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1700s, 1710s, 1720s, 1770s, 1780s, 1790s, 1730s, 1740s, 1750s, 1760s, 1800s, 1810s, 1820s, 1830s, 1610s, 1650s, 1640s, 1630s, 1620s, 1690s, 1840s, 1680s, 1850s, 1670s, 1860s, 1660s

• Name

  Yamanaka and Co.

• Place

  Japan, Saga prefecture, Yambeta kiln group, Arita

• Topic

  Cats, Porcelain, Art, Animals, Cobalt glaze, Edo period, Japan, (1600 - 1868), Japanese Art, Arita ware, Kutani type, Ceramics

• Culture

  Japanese

• Object Type

  Vessels (containers)