The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of May 13, 2026

A dark brown stoneware vessel is carved with cream-colored floral patterns. The rounded body tapers to a narrow base, topped by a short neck and flat rim. Thick, scrolling leaves and stylized flower heads encircle the center, their silhouettes revealed by removing the dark surface slip. At the vessel's bottom, vertical rounded shapes form a scalloped border. Fine, etched lines mark the internal details of the flourishing foliage and petals.

Vase with Peony Decoration

1000s-1100s

China, Northern Song dynasty

(960-1127)
Gray stoneware with underglaze slip decoration, Cizhou ware
Diameter: 19.7 cm (7 3/4 in.); Overall: 30.2 cm (11 7/8 in.)
Gift of William G. Mather 1948.119
Location: Not on view

Did You Know?

The thick foot rim is unglazed, while the shallow recessed flat base is covered with white slip and chance accumulations of underglaze pigment.
  • ?-1948
    William G. Mather [1857-1951], Cleveland, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art
    1948-
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • Hollis, Howard C. “A Sung Dynasty Vase.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art, vol. 35, no. 10, 1948, pp. 219–220. Mentioned: pp. 219-220; Reproduced: cover 25141513
    “Part II. Annual Report Issue for the Year 1948.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art, vol. 36, no. 6, 1949, pp. 111–142. Mentioned: pp. 116-117 25141566
    “Far Eastern Art: Important Museum Accessions in 1948.” The Far Eastern Quarterly, vol. 9, no. 1, 1949, pp. 66–74. Mentioned: p. 68 2049126
    Chinese Ceramics from the Prehistoric Period Through Ch'ien Lung. A Loan Exhibition from Collections in America and Japan. Los Angeles, CA: Los Angeles County Museum of Art, 1952. no. 215
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art Handbook. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1958. Mentioned and Reproduced: cat. no. 837 archive.org
    Mayuyama, Junkichi 繭山順吉. Chinese Ceramics in the West: Compendium of Chinese Ceramic Masterpieces in European and American Collection [欧米蒐蔵中国陶磁図錄]. Tokyo: Mayuyama & Co, 1960. Reproduced: pl. 35
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966. Reproduced: p. 255 archive.org
    The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969. Reproduced: p. 255 archive.org
  • Chinese Pottery. Los Angeles County Museum, Los Angeles, CA (March 17- April 27, 1952).
    35th Anniversary Exhibition. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 20-September 30, 1951).
  • {{cite web|title=Vase with Peony Decoration|url=false|author=|year=1000s-1100s|access-date=13 May 2026|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1948.119