Tray with three feet

Dish with low sloping sides and everted rim, three low spreading feet. Pottery with “3-color” glaze.
Body: fine grained buff white clay.
Glaze: soft lead glaze in white, dark green, yellowish brown and dark blue; fine crackle, some iridescence, slight flaking; bottom unglazed.
Decoration: flying goose and three clouds in a circle surrounded by floral motifs, deeply impressed in the clay and colored with glazes.

Historical period(s)
Tang dynasty, first half of 8th century
Medium
Earthenware with lead-silicate glazes tinted with cobalt, copper, and iron
Dimensions
H x W: 6.4 x 28.5 cm (2 1/2 x 11 1/4 in)
Geography
China, Henan province
Credit Line
Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment
Collection
Freer Gallery of Art
Accession Number
F1954.124
On View Location
Currently not on view
Classification(s)
Ceramic, Vessel
Type

Dish

Keywords
China, cloud, earthenware, flower, funerary, goose, iridescence, Tang dynasty (618 - 907)
Provenance
Provenance research underway.
Description

Dish with low sloping sides and everted rim, three low spreading feet. Pottery with "3-color" glaze.
Body: fine grained buff white clay.
Glaze: soft lead glaze in white, dark green, yellowish brown and dark blue; fine crackle, some iridescence, slight flaking; bottom unglazed.
Decoration: flying goose and three clouds in a circle surrounded by floral motifs, deeply impressed in the clay and colored with glazes.

Label

This tray made for funerary use derives its shape from a contemporary metal tray. The motif of a flying goose and three clouds in a circle surrounded by floral forms was deeply impressed into the clay, using a stamp, then picked out with glazes of different colors. The deep outlines kept the colored glazes from running together. The tray rests on three low, spreading feet.

Published References
  • Chang Wanli. Tang san cai you tao [Three-Colour Glaze Pottery of the T'ang Dynasty]. 3 vols., Hong Kong. vol. 2: pl. 92.
  • Oriental Ceramics: The World's Great Collections. 12 vols., Tokyo. vol. 10, pl. 11.
  • Dr. John Alexander Pope, Thomas Lawton, Harold P. Stern. The Freer Gallery of Art. 2 vols., Washington and Tokyo, 1971-1972. cat. 120, vol. 1: p. 178.
  • Margaret Medley. T'ang Pottery and Porcelain. Faber Monographs on Pottery and Porcelain London and Boston. pp. 42-43, pl. 31.
Collection Area(s)
Chinese Art
Web Resources
Google Cultural Institute
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