Tomb vessel with lid ("hill jar")

This Eastern Han dynasty tomb jar, purchased by Freer in 1905, came from the New York gallery of Yamanaka and Company. In China, it would have been filled with funeral offerings, but Freer was more interested in its aesthetic qualities than its original use. This example features a bluish-green glaze with a golden iridescence and an overflow of yellow. The lid has been repaired with gold lacquer, giving it a particularly apt chromatic resonance with the Peacock Room, whose secondary title is "Harmony in Blue and Gold." The following year, Freer purchased a similar specimen from the same dealer, which he displayed adjacent to this one.