A round yellow green bottle with a wide top and a narrow opening decorated with cranes and clouds
Photo © President and Fellows of Harvard College
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Photo © President and Fellows of Harvard College

Glazed in a light yellow green speckled with dark green spots, the bottle has a circular base. Just above the base it narrows slightly, then expanding outward, up to a rounded, bulbous top. At the center of the top, a short circular ridge flares outward around a narrow opening. Sparsely decorated, we see a few stylized, wispy clouds and a crane in flight on its sides in pale yellow lines. In the same color, a decorative geometric pattern rings the base in a narrow band. A pattern of lotus leaves encircles the opening.

Identification and Creation

Object Number
1991.551
Title
'Maebyŏng' Bottle with Crane and Cloud Decor
Classification
Vessels
Work Type
vessel
Date
second half 12th century
Places
Creation Place: East Asia, Korea
Period
Koryŏ dynasty, 918-1392
Culture
Korean
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/201077

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Inlaid celadon ware: light gray stoneware with celadon glaze over decoration inlaid in black and white slips
Technique
Celadon
Dimensions
H. 31.1 x Diam. 17.9 cm (12 1/4 x 7 1/16 in.)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
Gregory (1922-1988) and Maria C. Henderson (1923-2007), Medford, MA (by 1969-1988), inherited; by Maria C. Henderson, Medford, MA (1988-1991), partial gift and partial purchase; to Harvard University Art Museums, 1991.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Partial gift of Maria C. Henderson and partial purchase through the Ernest B. and Helen Pratt Dane Fund for Asian Art
Accession Year
1991
Object Number
1991.551
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
Permissions

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Publication History

  • Gregory Henderson, Korean Ceramics: An Art's Variety, exh. cat., Ohio State University, Divisions of Art Gallery (Columbus, Ohio, 1969), p. 38, no. 63

Verification Level

This record has been reviewed by the curatorial staff but may be incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu