The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of May 25, 2022

Storage Jar

壺

late 1300s–1400s

Japan, Muromachi period

(1392-1573)

Stoneware with natural ash glaze (Shigaraki ware)

Diameter: 45.7 x 39 cm (18 x 15 3/8 in.); Overall: 42 cm (16 9/16 in.)

John L. Severance Fund 1973.18

Location

not on view

Fun Fact

This jar was probably made using a coiling method, where coils of clay are stacked atop each other and smoothed to form its structure.

Description

The red color of this jar comes from iron in the clay. Natural ash glaze settled on the vessel during firing. The rim would have been complete with a slightly flared lip. Around the collar is an incised pattern resembling cypress fences, a common scene in the Japanese landscape. Intended for grain storage, rustic vessels like this one were also prized by tea enthusiasts, who appreciated the uncalculated beauty of the glaze and the asymmetry of these humble vessels.

Provenance
?–1973
(Shunichi Yabumoto Co., Ltd., Tokyo, Japan, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)
1973–
The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
Citations
Hauge, Victor, and Takako Hauge. Folk Traditions in Japanese Art. Washington: International Exhibitions Foundation, 1978. Reproduced: cat. no. 56, pp. 91, 237
Lee, Sherman E., Michael R. Cunningham, and Ursula Korneitchouk. One Thousand Years of Japanese Art (650-1650): From the Cleveland Museum of Art: Catalogue. New York: Japan Society, 1981. Mentioned and reproduced: pp. 60–61, no. 31
Kiseki no tsuchi: Shigarakiyaki o meguru mittsu no keshiki: Tokubetsuten [奇跡の土: 信楽焼をめぐる三つの景色: 特別展 = Miraculous Clay: Three Ceramic Landscapes Showcase Shigaraki Ware]. Koka: Shiga kenritsu togei no mori, 2020. Mentioned and Reproduced: p. 54, cat. no. 56
Exhibition history

Folk Traditions in Japanese Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art (September 20-October 29, 1978); Japan House Gallery, New York (November 14, 1978-January 7, 1979); Asian Art Museum of San Francisco, (January 26-March 11, 1979).

One Thousand Years of Japanese Art (650-1650) from The Cleveland Museum of Art. Japan House Gallery, New York, NY (March 19-May 17, 1981).

The World of Ceramics: Masterpieces from the Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 30-September 5, 1982).

Byobu: The Art of the Japanese Screen. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (August 1-October 14, 1984).

Asian Autumn: Early Ceramics from Japan and Korea. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (September 19-December 3, 1995).

Koshigaraki - The Shigaraki Jar in the Middle Ages. Miho Museum (organizer) (September 1-December 15, 1999).

Streams and Mountains Without End: Asian Art and the Legacy of Sherman E. Lee at the Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (June 27-August 23, 2009).

Japanese Gallery 235 Rotation. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (January 2-July 9, 2018).

Japanese Gallery 235 Rotation. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (July 11, 2018-January 7, 2019).

Source URL: https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1973.18