Vase

Label Text

Western connoisseurs who collected Chinese ceramics at the turn of the century knew relatively little about earlier wares. Since the meticulously formed and decorated Qing dynasty porcelains were generally regarded as the culminating achievement of a centuries-old tradition, it was assumed that the earlier wares must be more heavily potted and glazed. Thus, when Freer purchased this vase in 1896, he accepted the Song dynasty date assigned to it, though it is now known to be from the Ming dynasty. In the Peacock Room in Detroit, it was displayed along the south wall, amid more than forty bright blue Jun or "Jun style" ceramics. This lustrous, creamy white vase was one of several similarly toned vessels that Freer seems to have used on the south wall to punctuate the "harmonies in blue" created by the massing of Jun ware around the sideboard.

Object Name

Vase

Ware

Shiwan (Shekwan) ware

Dated

17th century

Period

Ming dynasty

Medium

Stoneware with opaque white glaze

Dimensions

HxW: 23.6 x 18.9 cm

Locale

Shiwan kilns

Country

China

Credit Line

Gift of Charles Lang Freer

Iteration

2

Shelf Number

122

Wall

South

Title

Vase

Object Number

F1896.35a-b

Freer Source

R. E. Moore

Freer Source City

New York

Freer Source State

New York

Freer Source Country

United States

Image

http://141.217.97.109/plugins/Dropbox/files/peacock-jpg/JPEG/F1896.35a-b.jpg

Collection

Citation

"Vase," in The Peacock Room, Freer Gallery of Art, Smithsonian Institution, Accession No. F1896.35a-b, Item #3260, http://peacockroom.wayne.edu/items/show/3260 (accessed March 29, 2024).