The Cleveland Museum of Art
Collection Online as of December 13, 2025
Container from Lit Charcoal and Ash Containers
1893–1914
(Japanese, 1851–1914)
Overall: 10 x 12 cm (3 15/16 x 4 3/4 in.)
Gift of James and Christine Heusinger 2022.181.3
Location: Not on view
Did You Know?
The Seifu studio generally followed the standard practice in Japan for identifying the artist and object in box inscriptions.Description
The box lid for these six-lobed lit charcoal and ash containers, or hiire, identifies them as kōhakuji, another of Yohei III’s translucent cream colors over ivory clay bodies. One might translate the name as “lustrous pearl[–glazed ivory] porcelain.” A hiire was filled with ash with burnt coals at the center so that embers and tobacco ash could be discarded safely during a gathering. Each of the lobes on the containers has a round protrusion set below the rim. The studlike pattern is called ruiza. The term is also used to describe the pattern that rings the shoulder of some flower vases or metal kettles used in chanoyu.- ?–2022James and Christine Heusinger, Berea, OH, given to the Cleveland Museum of Art2022–The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
- Maezaki, Shinya and Sinéad Vilbar. Colors of Kyoto: The Seifū Yohei Ceramic Studio. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 2023. Mentioned and Reproduced: cat. no. 37, p. 110
- {{cite web|title=Container from Lit Charcoal and Ash Containers|url=false|author=Seifū Yohei III|year=1893–1914|access-date=13 December 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}
Source URL:
https://www.clevelandart.org/art/2022.181.3