Tea caddy, katatsuki type

Light gray clay, dark brown on surface, with stripe of orange oxidation. String-cut base. Iron glaze, ranging from dark molasses to opaque rust brown; individual spots of light brown ash glaze on shoulder, running down body on side exposed to highest temperature during firing. Inside glazed. Dark lacquer repairs on rim.

Historical period(s)
Edo period, 1625-1675
Medium
Stoneware with iron and ash glazes; ivory lid
Style
Seto ware
Dimensions
H x Diam: 7.8 × 6.4 cm (3 1/16 × 2 1/2 in)
Geography
Japan, Aichi prefecture, Seto, Heiji kiln
Credit Line
Gift of Charles Lang Freer
Collection
Freer Gallery of Art
Accession Number
F1902.18a-b
On View Location
Currently not on view
Classification(s)
Ceramic, Vessel
Type

Tea caddy (katatsuki chaire)

Keywords
Edo period (1615 - 1868), Japan, Seto ware, stoneware, tea
Provenance

To 1902
Yamanaka & Company, to 1902 [1]

From 1902 to 1919
Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Yamanaka & Company in 1902 [2]

From 1920
Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]

Notes:

[1] Undated folder sheet note. Also see Original Pottery List, L. 1093, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives. The majority of Charles Lang Freer’s purchases from Yamanaka & Company were made at its New York branch. Yamanaka & Company maintained branch offices, at various times, in Boston, Chicago, London, Peking, Shanghai, Osaka, Nara, and Kyoto. During the summer, the company also maintained seasonal locations in Newport, Bar Harbor, and Atlantic City.

[2] See note 1.

[3] The original deed of Charles Lang Freer's gift was signed in 1906. The collection was received in 1920 upon the completion of the Freer Gallery.

Previous Owner(s) and Custodian(s)

Charles Lang Freer 1854-1919
Yamanaka and Co. (C.L. Freer source) 1917-1965

Description

Light gray clay, dark brown on surface, with stripe of orange oxidation. String-cut base. Iron glaze, ranging from dark molasses to opaque rust brown; individual spots of light brown ash glaze on shoulder, running down body on side exposed to highest temperature during firing. Inside glazed. Dark lacquer repairs on rim.

Published References
  • Louise Allison Cort. Seto and Mino Ceramics. Washington and Honolulu, 1992. cat. 53, p. 128.
Collection Area(s)
Japanese Art
Web Resources
Google Cultural Institute
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