Ingrid & J.K. Lee Study Center

This tall beaker vase features landscapes painted in thick blue cobalt that in Chinese is known as 青花 qinghua or “blue flower pattern.” In the middle, cloud-like endless knots (盤長 pan chang) float between flying cranes, both symbolizing longevity. 

This brushpot is decorated with plum, bamboo, and pine, which are collectively known as the “three friends of winter” (歲寒三友 suihan sanyouv). They are symbols of strength and honesty in the face of adversity.

This square bottle was made in northwest Kyushu, the third largest of Japan’s four main islands, at the kilns outside a small town called Arita. In English, “Arita ware” was used to describe blue-and-white ceramics made for export that mostly copied Chinese styles. The square shape of this bottle, however, was based on flasks for gin imported to China from Europe.  

Hand-painted lotus and peony designs adorn this sturdy jar that rises to a narrow mouth at the top. Surrounding the mouth are four hand-pinched brown loops (one is broken) that would have been used to secure a cloth lid on this jar, which was probably used to store an alcoholic drink made from sorghum called baijiu.

This stem cup, which is based on examples from China, embodies the lasting influence of the Ming dynasty conquest and occupation of Vietnam (1407–1428). While the shape may be Chinese, the off-white color is a hallmark of Vietnamese porcelain from this period. By the time this cup was made during the Lê dynasty in the 17th century, Vietnam was a hub for inexpensive imitations of Chinese porcelain that were traded to markets in Southeast Asia and beyond.

The image of a bluebird singing amongst sprigs of blooming lilies on this pink vase was made using a process called cloisonné. From the French cloison (partition), cloisonné uses thin metal strips to create cells that are filled with powdered enamel and fused. This artform peaked in Japan around 1880­–1910 when hundreds of makers and companies worked to satisfy the demand for these wares in European and American markets.

In the center of this jar is a single bird, most likely a swallow. This jar was made in north China where swallows are numerous and associated with spring and good fortune. The single swallow turns its head as if beckoning to others to partake in the wine that was once stored in this vessel.

This pair of lidded tea bowls known as 盖碗 gaiwan or 盅 zhong is designed to simultaneously steep, strain, and retain heat. Fluttering butterflies lingering over red morning glories suggest that these cups would have been associated with a wedding. Because the word for butterfly in Chinese, 蝴蝶 hudie, is a pun for "aged seventy to eighty," they are also a symbol of longevity.

These vases are shaped like double gourds, also called calabash or bottle gourds, which symbolize fertility because of their many seeds. The vases are decorated with magnolia blossoms, which do not drop their petals quickly and therefore symbolize eternal connection. This pair was likely made for export in the workshop of the seventh-generation potter Kinkōzan Sobei, who rose to worldwide prominence after exhibiting his work at the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago.

Peony flowers decorate this 梅瓶 meiping (prunus vase). Vessels shaped like this, with a flat foot, sides that flare into rounded shoulders, and a small mouth, were traditionally used to display branches of plum blossoms.

This 梅瓶 meiping vase is decorated with an assortment of fruit including peaches, crab apples, pomegranates, loquats, lychees, and longans.

Tokkuri are typically bulbous flasks with narrow necks designed to withstand high temperatures, making them ideal for serving hot sake. This tokkuri is decorated with flowering crabapples, which are native to Japan.

This vase depicts King Wen of Zhou (died 1056 BCE) presenting clothing to General Jiang Ziya (1128–1015 BCE) as a token of appreciation for his help in conquering the Shang dynasty around 1046 BCE. The foot has an artemisia leaf mark that was used on vessels made as early as 1660 during the reign of Emperor Kangxi (1662–1722 CE), when he was consolidating his rule and the use of imperial reign marks was still prohibited.

This vase depicts a meeting between an old gentleman holding a gnarled, twisted staff and a young warrior wearing elaborate armor who has just dismounted his horse. Richly painted in blue cobalt, this vase was made during the transition from the Ming to Qing dynasties, when Manchus from North Asia waged a decades-long conflict with the Ming Chinese armies to consolidate their rule (1618–1683).

The imperial kilns at Jingdezhen recovered quickly after the founding of the People’s Republic of China in 1949. For a brief period from 1950 to around 1955, high-quality blue-and-white porcelain like this was produced with a seal-script square mark on the base: 景德镇制 made in Jingdezhen. The vase is decorated with the “three friends of winter”—歲寒三友 sui han sanyou (pine, bamboo, and plum)—Confucian symbols of perseverance and resilience.

A silver, looped handle was added to this Chinese dish during the 19th century in the Netherlands, where it may have been used to serve soup. The dish is decorated with elongated women called meiren (beauties) in Chinese that the Dutch called lang lijzen (drawn long). This was mistranslated in English as “Long Eliza.”

This candlestick is shaped like a wooden Japanese sailing ship—the missing candle forms the mast. Crashing over the bow are stylized waves that could reference local print culture or imported Chinese textiles. The combination of local and global sources on a nautical candlestick reflects the period of transition and opening to the outside world that Japan was undergoing when this object was made.

This pouring vessel is known by the Malay word kendi or pitcher. During the reign of Emperor Wanli (1572­–1620), China began to export these vessels to Muslim communities in Southeast Asia. They were traditionally used as a communal drinking vessel, with the shape and height designed so that liquid could be poured into someone’s mouth without touching their lips.

The shoulder of this jar is decorated with the eight auspicious symbols of Buddhism (八吉祥 bajixiang), which include the wheel of dharma, conch shell, victory banner, parasol, lotus flower, treasure vase, fish pair, and endless knot. In the center, two green dragons stride through clouds in pursuit of flaming pearls.

As early as the second century BCE, yellow represented the earth in Chinese culture. By the time this cup was made during the Qing dynasty in the 19th century, yellow was designated as the exclusive color of the royal family, symbolizing supreme authority. The cup is decorated with bamboo, which is known to bend rather than break during storms. Because of this property it symbolizes the simple virtues of a scholar: integrity, loyalty, and grace.

A pair of long-tailed phoenixes, ancient symbols of imperial power in China, fly across a scrolling pattern of flowering plums on this vase. While the dragon represented the emperor, the phoenix symbolized the empress. The appearance of mythological omens like the phoenix was believed to occur only during the reign of virtuous rulers.

This bulbous vase with an exaggerated, flaring mouth is decorated in colorful enamels referred to in the West as famille verte or “green family.” Characterized by green hues, this overglaze was developed around 1680.

This delicate vase is adorned with chrysanthemum flowers, the official emblem of the Japanese Emperor. The dragonfly hovering above evokes a summer day. Although the dragonfly seems fragile, it is a powerful fighter that symbolizes victory and courage in Japanese culture.

Bottle gourds, known as hyōtan in Japanese, contain many seeds and are often associated with numerous offspring. Thus, women playing with children among blossoming flowers is appropriate decoration on a vessel meant to evoke fertility.

Blue-and-white pottery in China emerged in the 14th century when cobalt pigment for the blue decoration was first imported from Persia. The translucent white quality of the porcelain comes from kaolinite (高嶺土 gaolingtu), a mineral found in Jingdezhen, China. This was the location of kilns that served Chinese emperors and is sometimes called “the porcelain capital of China.”

Introduced with Buddhism as a symbol of purity, the lotus is an important flower in Chinese art. It symbolizes summer, longevity, elegance, and other virtues.

These ceramics were made at the Ding kilns in Hebei province in the north of China near modern-day Beijing. The kilns were fueled with coal, which creates an oxygen-rich firing atmosphere, resulting in warm tones in the glaze. The rims of the dishes are unglazed because at the Ding kilns, ceramics were stacked upside down to fit more inside. Decorative patterns were incised by hand, probably with a piece of sharp-tipped bamboo or impressed using ceramic molds.

The stylized waterfall rushing past a pine branch on this plate evokes the vital energy of the earth, known as 気 ki in Japanese, which literally means “breath” or “air.”

The vibrant iron red glaze on this dish decorated with a serpentine dragon is a hallmark of Kutani ware, a type of Japanese pottery made in the Kaga region of Ishikawa prefecture for over 350 years. In the late 19th century, the Japanese government began to promote ceramic traditions like Kutani ware at world expositions. After red-glazed ceramics from Japan were displayed at the 1873 World Exposition in Vienna, the export of Kutani ware to Europe increased dramatically.

This charger plate is an example of Chinese porcelain produced for overseas markets. In the center is the Grand Royal Coat of Arms of the Kingdom of France with three fleur-de-lis, stylized three-point flowers that were adopted as a symbol of the French royal family in the late 12th century.

Colorful bats flutter among peaches and eight round medallions composed of the Chinese word 壽 shou (longevity). In Chinese, the word for bat (蝠 fu) sounds similar to the words for blessings (福 fu) and riches (富 fu). On this plate, the motif of five bats is known as wu fu (five happinesses): longevity, health, wealth, virtue, and a natural death.

This small dish is decorated in motif known as “pseudo tobacco leaf.” Tobacco leaf patterned dishware from China, of which there are at least 38 known variations, was extremely popular in Europe and America in the second half of the 18th century. Yet rather than featuring flowering tobacco, the “pseudo” variant features tropical plants like hibiscus and passion flower that were probably based on textile designs from India.