Collection Online as of March 25, 2023

Sake Flask

1500s

Part of a set. See all set records

Japan, Muromachi period

(1392–1573)

Black laquered wood with red lacquer

Diameter: 24 cm (9 7/16 in.); Overall: 30.5 cm (12 in.)

Seventy-fifth anniversary gift of Mitsuru Tajima 1991.47.2

Location

not on view

Fun Fact

The evocative imagery of brushed leaves and bunches of grapes suggest that the artist referred to a particular painting when decorating this vase.

Description

This flask contained rice wine, or sake. Its wood body was shaped by a lathe before black lacquer was applied to the surface. A red lacquer design of grapevines, an auspicious motif, covers the surface. With their numerous, long-lasting fruits, grapevines traditionally symbolized fertility and longevity in East Asia.

Provenance

?-1991

(Tajima Mitsuru, Tokyo, Japan, ?-1991, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art)

1991-

The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH, 1991-present

Citations

Turner, Evan H., et al. “Notable Acquisitions.” The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art, vol. 78, no. 3, 1991, pp. 63–147. Reproduced: p. 141 www.jstor.org

Cunningham, Michael R. The Triumph of Japanese Style: 16th-Century Art in Japan. [Cleveland, Ohio]: Published by the Cleveland Museum of Art in cooperation with the Indiana University Press, 1991. Reproduced: p. 121

Sŏn, Sŭng-hye. The Lure of Painted Poetry: Japanese and Korean Art. Cleveland, OH: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2011. Reproduced: p. 77, cat. no. 74b

Exhibition history

Cleveland Museum of Art, 1991: Notable Acquisitions.

Cleveland Museum of Art, 1991: The Triumph of Japanese Style: 16th-Century Art in Japan.

The Lure of Painted Poetry: Cross-cultural Text and Image in Korean and Japanese Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (April 15-August 21, 2011).