The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of December 17, 2025
White-Glazed Jar with Hidden Design
1500s–1600s
Overall: 13.9 x 16.4 cm (5 1/2 x 6 7/16 in.)
Location: Not on view
Did You Know?
Tianbai, or sweet-white glaze, was developed to accommodate the Yongle emperor’s (reigned 1403–24) preference for white ceramics.Description
White was a ritual color used in Buddhist ceremonies, as well as the color of mourning. This jar is made of two molded halves that were joined where the vessel’s middle section shows a raised line. It is covered by a silky white glaze called “sweet-white” (tianbai; 甜白). A “hidden design” (anhua; 暗花) of floral scrolls on the shoulder and stylized petals around the base shine through the glaze. The jar may have been used as a planter, a vase for flowers, or it may have held incense sticks on a home altar.- ?–2010(K.Y. Fine Art, Hong Kong, sold to Mr. and Mrs. Joseph P. Keithley)2010–2020Nancy F. and Joseph P. Keithley, Cleveland, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art2020–The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
- Von Spee, Clarissa. "Chinese Ceramics and Works on Paper." In The Keithley Collection at the Cleveland Museum of Art, edited by Heather Lemonedes Brown, 194–229. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 2022. Mentioned and Reproduced: p. 217; Mentioned: pp. 259–261
- Impressionism to Modernism: The Keithley Collection. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (September 11, 2022-January 8, 2023).
- {{cite web|title=White-Glazed Jar with Hidden Design|url=false|author=|year=1500s–1600s|access-date=17 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2020.185