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Unknown Artist — Plum Vase (Maebyeong) with Clouds, Cranes, and Children Motifs

Unknown Artist

Plum Vase (Maebyeong) with Clouds, Cranes, and Children Motifs

1175

Celadon or green-glazed stoneware is one of the greatest achievements of Korea’s Goryeo dynasty. Goryeo potters absorbed Chinese techniques and surpassed that country’s examples by further refining a technique known as sanggam. The time-consuming and complex process of sanggam involves carving a motif, then filling it with white and/or red clay (which turns black after firing) before applying the final bluish-green glaze. This vase is decorated with two large oval-like frames containing a scene of children playing in a bamboo garden, and a motif of cranes flying through clouds, symbolizing a wish for fertility and longevity.

Medium
Stoneware with red and white slip and celadon glaze
Dimensions

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About this work

Unknown Artist, Plum Vase (Maebyeong) with Clouds, Cranes, and Children Motifs, 1175

Celadon or green-glazed stoneware is one of the greatest achievements of Korea’s Goryeo dynasty. Goryeo potters absorbed Chinese techniques and surpassed that country’s examples by further refining a technique known as sanggam. The time-consuming and complex process of sanggam involves carving a motif, then filling it with white and/or red clay (which turns black after firing) before applying the final bluish-green glaze. This vase is decorated with two large oval-like frames containing a scene of children playing in a bamboo garden, and a motif of cranes flying through clouds, symbolizing a wish for fertility and longevity.

Medium
Stoneware with red and white slip and celadon glaze
Dimensions
33.4 x 19.7 cm
Year
1175
Seen at
Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL

Related themes

Stoneware, Celadon, Asian, Decorative Arts, Medieval, Vessel, Crane, Blue-Green, Korean, Floral Motifs

More works by Unknown Artist

Collected by

Cleveland Museum of Art, Art Institute of Chicago