Skip to Main Content

White-Glazed Jar with Hidden Design

1500s–1600s
(1368-1644)
Porcelain with sweet-white (tianbai; 甜白) glaze
Overall: 13.9 x 16.4 cm (5 1/2 x 6 7/16 in.)
Nancy F. and Joseph P. Keithley Collection Gift 2020.185
Location: not on view
You can copy, modify, and distribute this work, all without asking permission. Learn more about CMA's Open Access Initiative.

Download, Print and Share

Did You Know?

Tianbai, or sweet-white glaze, was developed to accommodate the Yongle emperor’s (reigned 1403–24) preference for white ceramics.

Description

White was a ritual color used in Buddhist ceremonies, as well as the color of mourning. This jar is made of two molded halves that were joined where the vessel’s middle section shows a raised line. It is covered by a silky white glaze called “sweet-white” (tianbai; 甜白). A “hidden design” (anhua; 暗花) of floral scrolls on the shoulder and stylized petals around the base shine through the glaze. The jar may have been used as a planter, a vase for flowers, or it may have held incense sticks on a home altar.
White-Glazed Jar with Hidden Design

White-Glazed Jar with Hidden Design

1500s–1600s

China, Jiangxi province, Jingdezhen kilns, Ming dynasty (1368-1644)

See Also

Visually Similar Artworks

Contact us

The information about this object, including provenance, may not be currently accurate. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@clevelandart.org.

To request more information about this object, study images, or bibliography, contact the Ingalls Library Reference Desk.

All images and data available through Open Access can be downloaded for free. For images not available through Open Access, a detail image, or any image with a color bar, request a digital file from Image Services.