Compound vase

A compound vase formed of a central vase to which five similar forms are attached at the side walls, with inner communication. Wood standMonochrome-celadon.
Clay: hard, white porcelain.
Glaze: luminous pale green; unglazed white foot rims.
Decoration: a vague design stamped in slight relief on the sides under glaze. Qianlong reign-mark in under-glaze blue on central foot.

Historical period(s)
Qing dynasty, Qianlong reign mark and period, 1735-1795
Medium
Porcelain with celadon glaze
Style
Jingdezhen ware
Dimensions
H x W: 16.5 x 14 cm (6 1/2 x 5 1/2 in)
Geography
China, Jiangxi province, Jingdezhen
Credit Line
Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment
Collection
Freer Gallery of Art
Accession Number
F1946.6a-b
On View Location
Currently not on view
Classification(s)
Ceramic, Vessel
Type

Vase

Keywords
China, Jingdezhen ware, porcelain, Qing dynasty (1644 - 1911)
Provenance
Provenance research underway.
Description

A compound vase formed of a central vase to which five similar forms are attached at the side walls, with inner communication. Wood standMonochrome-celadon.
Clay: hard, white porcelain.
Glaze: luminous pale green; unglazed white foot rims.
Decoration: a vague design stamped in slight relief on the sides under glaze. Qianlong reign-mark in under-glaze blue on central foot.

Marking(s)

Qianlong reign-mark in under-glaze blue on central foot.

Label

The remarkable shape of this vessel was created by joining separate mold-formed sections together.  The floral decoration at the midsection and geometric patterns on the shoulder and foot were also mold formed.  Vessels of this shape were made as tour-de-force showpieces, although they may have occasionally served as vases.  Five-spouted ceramic vessels from the sixth century offer a distant prototype, but the shape of this vessel was a new creation by eighteenth-century potters.  The celadon color imitates a green glaze made popular at the Southern Song dynasty (1127-1279) kilns in Longquan, Zhejiang Province.  Jingdezhen potters sought to reproduce the jade like quality of the early celadon ceramics, but the result was a paler and more translucent glaze than that of the prototypes.

Published References
  • Oriental Ceramics: The World's Great Collections. 12 vols., Tokyo. vol. 10, pl. 128.
Collection Area(s)
Chinese Art
Web Resources
Google Cultural Institute
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