Longquan ware funerary jar

Celadon–Li-shui type. Covered jar with flaring foot ring, two loop handles, flaring mouth and vertical lip.
Clay: Light gray porcellaneous stoneware, fired reddish brown.
Glaze: Transparent olive-green with fine crackle.
Decoration: Incised on body; carved on cover.

Historical period(s)
Northern Song dynasty, late 10th century
Medium
Stoneware with celadon glaze
Style
Longquan ware
Dimensions
H x W: 37 x 16.5 cm (14 9/16 x 6 1/2 in)
Geography
China, Zhejiang province, Lishui or Longquan
Credit Line
Purchase — Charles Lang Freer Endowment
Collection
Freer Gallery of Art
Accession Number
F1959.7a-b
On View Location
Currently not on view
Classification(s)
Ceramic, Vessel
Type

Funerary jar

Keywords
China, green glaze, Longquan ware, Northern Song dynasty (960 - 1127), stoneware
Provenance

From at least 1954 to 1959
C. T. Loo & Company, New York, from at least December 6, 1954 [1]

From 1959
Freer Gallery of Art, purchased from C. T. Loo & Company on June 11, 1959 [2]

Notes:

[1] See John A. Pope's letter to Frank Caro of C. T. Loo & Co., dated December 6, 1954, in which he requests shipment of the jar to the Freer Gallery, copy in object file.

[2] See C. T. Loo's invoice, issued by Frank Caro, dated June 11, 1959, copy on object file.

Previous Owner(s) and Custodian(s)

C.T. Loo & Company 1914-1948

Description

Celadon--Li-shui type. Covered jar with flaring foot ring, two loop handles, flaring mouth and vertical lip.
Clay: Light gray porcellaneous stoneware, fired reddish brown.
Glaze: Transparent olive-green with fine crackle.
Decoration: Incised on body; carved on cover.

Label

Graves in Zhejiang Province have yielded tall, long-necked lidded jars like this one buried together with a ewer and a vase bearing multiple false spouts on the shoulder. The three items appear to have constituted a set of burial offerings, and this type of jar most likely contained grain, which perhaps was meant to sustain the deceased for eternity. The incised decor and olive green glaze show the influence of Yaozhou ware.

Published References
  • Oriental Ceramics: The World's Great Collections. 12 vols., Tokyo. vol. 10, pl. 35.
Collection Area(s)
Chinese Art
Web Resources
Google Cultural Institute
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