Jar with incised and applied decoration

A voluptuous form, with trumpet mouth, swelling body, and a broad foot counterbalancing the constricted neck and base. Jewelry-like swags and rosettes made from thin clay coils appliqued over incised and impressed bands at shoulder and lower neck. The grainy, unglazed stoneware clay is gray.

Historical period(s)
Ayutthaya period, mid 15th-early 16th century
Medium
Unglazed stoneware
Style
Sukhothai or Phitsanulok ware
Dimensions
H x W x D: 38.7 x 29.2 x 29.2 cm (15 1/4 x 11 1/2 x 11 1/2 in)
Geography
Thailand, Sukhothai or Phitsanulok province, Si Satchanalai or Phitsanulok, Ko Noi kilns or Tao Hai kilns
Credit Line
Purchase — funds provided by Diana Sinkler Clagett, Ellen Walton, Karol K. Rodriguez, Donna L. Collins, and the Charles Lang Freer Endowment
Collection
Freer Gallery of Art Collection
Accession Number
F1995.7
On View Location
Currently not on view
Classification(s)
Ceramic, Vessel
Type

Jar

Keywords
Ayutthaya period (1351 - 1767), Phitsanulok ware, Sawankhalok ware, stoneware, Thailand
Provenance

Early 1960s
Excavated in situ Bananan, Barangay San Isidro, Puerto Galera municipality, Oriental Mindoro province, Philippines, in the early 1960s [1]

Early 1960s
Mr. And Mrs. Napoleon Jamir, purchased in Manila in the early 1960s [2]

Early 1960s
Mr. Arturo de Santos, purchased from Mrs. Napoleon Jamir, the Philippines, in the early 1960s [3]

To about 1995
Venecio Magbuhos (V.M. Antiques), Ermita, Manila, purchased from Mr. Arturo de Santos, to about 1995 [4]

About 1995
John Forbes, Silver Spring, Maryland, purchased from Venecio Magbuhos, about 1995 [5]

From 1995
Freer Gallery of Art, purchased from John Forbes in 1995

Notes:

[1] According to a letter from John Forbes to Louise Cort, September 20, 1994 (see Curatorial Note 11 in the object record).

[2] Napoleon Jamir's wife, whose name is unknown, collected ceramics and operated an antique shop (see Curatorial Note 11 in the object record).

[3] According to Curatorial Note 11 in the object record.

[4] See note 3.

[5] See note 3.

Previous Owner(s) and Custodian(s)

John Forbes
Arturo de Santos
Mr. and Mrs. Napoleon Jamir
Venecio Magbuhos

Description

A voluptuous form, with trumpet mouth, swelling body, and a broad foot counterbalancing the constricted neck and base. Jewelry-like swags and rosettes made from thin clay coils appliqued over incised and impressed bands at shoulder and lower neck. The grainy, unglazed stoneware clay is gray.

Label

Thin clay threads pressed onto this unglazed jar produced a style of relief decoration that also appears in other media in the Ayutthaya period, including bronze images of the crowned Buddha, metal vessels, and lacquered court hats. Whereas museums and collectors acknowledge the importance of unglazed stoneware in Japan, the strong tradition of unglazed stoneware in mainland Southeast Asia has been obscured by a focus on glazed and decorated export wares.

Published References
  • Louise Allison Cort, George Williams, David P. Rehfuss. Ceramics in Mainland Southeast Asia. Washington. .
  • Leandro Locsin, Cecelia Locsin. Oriental Ceramics Discovered in the Philippines. Rutland, Vermont. pp 127-129.
  • Jesus T. Peralta, (Forward) Governor Jaime C. Laya. Kayamanan: Pottery and Ceramics from the Arturo De Santos Collection. Manila, Philippines. p. 176, pl. XLIII, fig.a.
Collection Area(s)
Southeast Asian Art
Web Resources
Ceramics in Mainland Southeast Asia
Google Cultural Institute
F|S Southeast Asia
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