The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of December 19, 2025

Vessel

300s BCE

Japan, Yayoi period

(c. 300 BCE–300 CE)
Earthenware
height: 34 cm (13 3/8 in.); Diameter: 33 cm (13 in.)
Edward L. Whittemore Fund 1989.69
Location: Not on view

Did You Know?

Yayoi ceramics, like this example, were likely made by laying one coil of clay on top of another to form the body of the vessel.

Description

Pottery existed for thousands of years in Japan before the Yayoi period, but the development of wet rice agriculture and permanent settlements by previously nomadic communities changed its form significantly. Yayoi period pots were aimed more at long-term storage than those from prior millennia. Their smooth, unadorned surfaces and round shapes also reflect the style of contemporaneous works from the Korean peninsula, indicating the strong ties between Japanese communities and Korean kingdoms at the time.
  • ?-1989
    (Masaharu Nagano, Tokyo, Japan, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)
    1989-
    The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
  • E. H. T. “The Year in Review: Selections 1989.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 77, no. 2 (February 1990): 38–78. Reproduced: p. 74; Mentioned: p. 79, no. 231 www.jstor.org
    Cunningham, Michael R., "Asian Autumn", Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland Art: The Cleveland Museum of Art Members Magazine. Vol. 35 no. 08, October 1995 Mentioned & reproduced: p. 5 archive.org
  • Japanese Gallery 235 Rotation. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (January 2-July 9, 2018).
    Asian Autumn: Early Ceramics from Japan and Korea. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (September 19-December 3, 1995).
    The Year in Review for 1989. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (February 6-April 15, 1990).
  • {{cite web|title=Vessel|url=false|author=|year=300s BCE|access-date=19 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1989.69