Teapot in the form of a cloth bundle

Tea-pot; oblong with rounded corners; cover, handle and short spout.
Inscription incised and two seals impressed on base.
Clay: fine, hard.
Glaze: thin tea-colored slip.
Decoration: a knotted napkin, modelled in relief.

Maker(s)
Artist: Chen Mingyuan (active late 17th-early 18th century)
Historical period(s)
Qing dynasty, Kangxi reign, 1708
Medium
Unglazed stoneware
Style
Yixing ware
Dimensions
H x W: 7.4 x 15.8 cm (2 15/16 x 6 1/4 in)
Geography
China, Jiangsu province, Yixing
Credit Line
Gift of Charles Lang Freer
Collection
Freer Gallery of Art
Accession Number
F1916.576a-b
On View Location
Currently not on view
Classification(s)
Ceramic, Vessel
Type

Teapot

Keywords
China, Kangxi reign (1662 - 1722), Qing dynasty (1644 - 1911), tea, Yixing ware
Provenance

To 1916
Pang Yuanji (1864-1949), Shanghai, China, to 1916 [1]

From 1916 to 1919
Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), given by Pang Yuanji in 1916 [2]

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

Notes:

[1] See Original Pottery List, L. 2501, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives.

[2] See note 1. For further details regarding this gift, see Provenance Remark 1 in the object record, as well as the object record for F1916.578a-b, Curatorial Remark 11, Louise Cort, June 9, 2010.

[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.

Previous Owner(s) and Custodian(s)

Charles Lang Freer 1854-1919
Pang Yuanji (C.L. Freer source) 1864-1949

Description

Tea-pot; oblong with rounded corners; cover, handle and short spout.
Inscription incised and two seals impressed on base.
Clay: fine, hard.
Glaze: thin tea-colored slip.
Decoration: a knotted napkin, modelled in relief.

Inscription(s)

戌子仲冬月
陽羨山人指
頭生活

Published References
  • Gerard Tsang. Yixing tao yi [Yixing Pottery]. Hong Kong. pl. 6.
  • Warren E. Cox. The Book of Pottery and Porcelain. 2 vols., New York. vol. 1: p. 523, fig. 760.
  • Chung-kuo ch'a hu ta kuan. Taipei. p. 24, pl. 6.
  • Ruihua Xie. Yixing cha chu [Yixing Teapots]. Peking. p. 138.
Collection Area(s)
Chinese Art
Web Resources
Google Cultural Institute
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