The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of July 15, 2026

A celadon, a muted gray-green glaze, vessel consists of a round, shallow box with a domed lid. Fine white and black lines outline a central circular flower surrounded by blossoms and a notched border. An interlocking geometric band circles the sides. Fine cracks web across the glaze, and a dark vertical stain marks the lid. The vessel sits on a neutral surface against a dark, gradient background.

Box and Cover with Inlaid Chrysanthemum and Scroll Design

1200s

Korea, Goryeo dynasty

(918–1392)
pottery
Gift of John L. Severance 1921.635
Location: Not on view

Did You Know?

This ceramic container was used to store either incense or cosmetics.

Description

Celadons, spoons, seals, and bronze mirrors were the most common burial objects in tombs during the Goryeo period (918–1392). Once used to contain colored powder, rouge, and eyebrow gel for makeup, this small container was one of the standard goods that furnished tombs of the elites. Both women and men used the grain powder of rice or millet for whitening their skin, safflower extract for rouge, and plant ash or soot for eyebrow gel. Yet, natural-looking makeup seems to have been the most favorable one in Korea according to the travelogue by Xu Jing (1091–1153), the Chinese diplomat who visited Korea in 1123.
  • ?–1921
    (Dr. Alfred Irving Ludlow [1875–1961], Cleveland, OH, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)
    1921–
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Goryeo Dynasty: Korea's Age of Enlightenment, 918-1392. San Francisco: Asian Art Museum, 2003.
    Lee, Young-hee. "The Study on Techniques and their Interrelations among Craft Arts of the Goryeo Dynasty [고려시대 공예기법 연구 상호관련성을 중심으로]." Misulsa hakbo 22 (2004): 133–170. www.dbpia.co.kr
    A Chinese traveler in medieval Korea : Xu Jing's illustrated account of the Xuanhe embassy to Koryo. Translated by Sem Vermeersch. Honolulu: University of Hawaii Press, 2016.
    Goryeo: The Glory of Korea [대고려, 그 찬란한 도전]. Seoul: National Museum of Korea, 2018.
    Sparkles of Jade: Goryeo Celadon [高麗青磁 : ヒスイのきらめき]. Ōsaka: Ōsaka: Shiritsu Tōyō Tōji Bijutsukan, 2018.
  • {{cite web|title=Box and Cover with Inlaid Chrysanthemum and Scroll Design|url=false|author=|year=1200s|access-date=15 July 2026|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1921.635