Plum Vase (Maebyeong) with Clouds, Cranes, and Children Motifs
Goryeo dynasty (918–1392), late 12th century
- Medium
- Stoneware with red and white slip and celadon glaze
- Classification
- Vessel
- Dimensions
- 33.4 × 19.7 cm (13 1/8 × 7 3/4 in.)
- Culture
- Korea
- Museum
- Art Institute of Chicago, Arts of Asia
- Credit line
- Gift of Mr. Russell Tyson
- Rights
- Public domain (CC0), as the museum states it.
- Who can see it
- Tweens profiles and older: its subjects are known and suit older children. How works are placed
View at the Art Institute of Chicago
About this work
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.
Description © Art Institute of Chicago, CC BY 4.0
