Fragment of underglaze cobalt-blue-painted wall tile

Object Details

• Description

  Shape: Corner fragment of a hollow-back, mold-formed Vietnamese wall tile. The tile appears originally to have been something other than square or rectangular in shape. The body of the tile was hollow. The edge walls are 3.8 cm wide from the face of the tile to the base of the edge. The face of the tile is approximately 1.3 cm thick from front to hollowed-out back.

  Clay: The body consists of an extremely fine, light-gray clay which has the consistency and color of glazing putty. The fine gray clay of the tile body incorporates many air pockets, some of them quite large. There are few inclusions.

  Glaze: A milky white slip onto which the cobalt blue decoration was painted is covered by a thin, clear glaze.

  Decoration: The underglaze cobalt-blue floral decoration is painted in outline and wash technique. Where the cobalt was applied thickly it has burned through the thin glaze. The floral decoration consists of a curling vine with off-shooting leaves and blossoms. The tile is outlined at the edge by 2-3 straight border lines.

  Marks: None.

• Provenance

  To 1957

  Abu Ridho, Jakarta, Indonesia. [1]

  1957

  John A. Pope (1906-1982), Washington DC, gift of Abu Ridho, Jakarta, Indonesia. [2]

  From 1957

  Freer Gallery of Art, gift of John A. Pope, Washington DC [3]

  Notes:

  [1] See Curatorial Remark 1 in the object record.

  [2] See note 1.

  [3] See note 1. See also object file, Collections Management Office.

• Collection

  Freer Study Collection

• Previous custodian or owner

  Abu Ridho (born 1927)

  Dr. John Alexander Pope (1906-1982)

• Origin

  Red River Delta kilns, Hai Duong province, Vietnam

• Credit Line

  Gift of John A. Pope

• Type

  Architectural Element

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

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Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1600s, 1400s

• Name

  Pope, John Alexander, Ridho, Abu

• Place

  Hai Duong province, Vietnam, Red River Delta kilns

• Topic

  Art, Later Le dynasty (1428 - 1527), Stoneware, Southeast Asian Art, Ceramics, Flowers

• Culture

  Southeast Asians

• Object Type

  Architectural elements