dish | Spencer Museum of Art

dish , late 1100s, Goryeo dynasty (918–1392)

Where object was made: Korea

Material/technique: sanggam inlay; cheongja ware; stoneware; celadon glaze

Dimensions:
Object Height/Diameter (Height x Diameter): 3.5 x 12.7 cm
Object Height/Diameter (Height x Diameter): 1 3/8 x 5 in

Credit line: William Bridges Thayer Memorial

Accession number: 1928.7139

Not on display

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Label texts

The Koryo period (918-1392) is well known for its extremely high quality of celadon. The unique, exquisite color of celadon can be obtained through an arcane method of firing with reduced oxygen. Celadon wares first appeared in the 11th century and the technique was subsequently further refined. In the 12th century, pure celadon emerged and was used by aristocratic households and Buddhist temples. Koryo pottery reached its peak in the first half of the 12th century, when artisans accomplished the remarkable advance in the technique of inlaying and drawing designs on celadons.

Koryo celadon is widely acclaimed as the best and finest type of pottery for its subdued yet clear, high-spirited bluish-green color, its graceful, flowing curves, and its vivacious shape. Furthermore, Koryo celadon, with its poetic inlaid designs and especially its inlaid copper whose color is artfully transformed to look red, is the first technique of its kind ever known in the world and represents the apex of Koryo pottery.

Archive Label 2003:
The two flat sides of this impressive vase are decorated with symmetrically arranged lotuses complemented by sprays of blossoming reeds, creating an elegant, polished design. The motifs are set out in inlay. Chinese potters used the inlay technique, but it was more fully exploited by Korean potters, who drew on skills derived from metalwork and lacquer ware.
Inlaying was a time consuming process. The design is incised into the leather-hard clay body and filled in with white and/or black slip. The piece is fired first at a low temperature, and then it was covered with a celadon glaze and fired again, this time at a high temperature. Inlay was used to decorate celadon wares only after a glaze of sufficient clarity was developed in the first half of the twelfth century. In this vase, the elaborate designs, clearly visible through the thin, transparent glaze look like splendid gems.
The flattened sides of this vase can be related to the taste of Yuan (1279-1368) China, suggesting that this vessel was produced during the late thirteenth century.