Jardiniere with impressed character jiu (nine)

Flower pot of elongated quatrefoil shape with steep high sides; five round holes in base; Chinese number jiu (nine) incised in clay underneath; four cloud-scroll feet; spur marks.
Clay: fine grained, gray, fired hard.
Glaze: thick, opaque, glossy; light blue and violet inside, rich shades of purple outside; “earth worm” marks.

Historical period(s)
Yuan or Ming dynasty, 14th-15th century
Medium
Stoneware with Jun glaze and copper pigment
Style
Jun ware
Dimensions
H x W x D: 11.9 x 20.8 x 16.4 cm (4 11/16 x 8 3/16 x 6 7/16 in)
Geography
China, Henan province, Yuxian, Juntai
Credit Line
Gift of Charles Lang Freer
Collection
Freer Gallery of Art Collection
Accession Number
F1916.2
On View Location
Currently not on view
Classification(s)
Ceramic, Vessel
Type

Jardiniere

Keywords
China, Jun ware, Ming dynasty (1368 - 1644), stoneware, Yuan dynasty (1279 - 1368)
Provenance

Found in the village of Ssu, near Honan-fu, in 1914 [1]

To 1916
Lai-Yuan and Company, New York, to 1916 [2]

From 1916 to 1919
Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Lai-Yuan and Company in 1916 [3]

From 1920
The Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [4]

Notes:

[1]According to Curatorial Remark 3, Charles Lang Freer, in the object record, this object, along with F1916.4 and F1916.5, "was found in a large flower pot at a ruined house in the village of Ssu, near Honan-fu, in 1914."

[2] See Original Pottery List, L.2455, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives.

[3] See note 2.

[4] 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
Lai-Yuan & Company (C.L. Freer source) ca. 1915-April 1921

Description

Flower pot of elongated quatrefoil shape with steep high sides; five round holes in base; Chinese number jiu (nine) incised in clay underneath; four cloud-scroll feet; spur marks.
Clay: fine grained, gray, fired hard.
Glaze: thick, opaque, glossy; light blue and violet inside, rich shades of purple outside; "earth worm" marks.

Published References
  • Sigisbert Chrétien Bosch Reitz. Catalogue of an Exhibition of Early Chinese Pottery and Sculpture. Exh. cat. New York. fig. 221.
  • Rose Kerr. Dazzling Official Jun Wares: From Museums and Collections Around the World. Hong Kong, China, August 13, 2021. p. 104, fig. 65.
Collection Area(s)
Chinese Art
Web Resources
Google Cultural Institute
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