Vase with Inlaid Lotus, Plum, and Bamboo Design

1300s

Vase with Inlaid Lotus, Plum, and Bamboo Design, 1300s. Korea, Goryeo period (918-1392). Celadon with inlaid design; overall: 30.3 cm (11 15/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of John L. Severance 1918.471 Flattened-shaped jars like this one started to appear around the late 13th century. Each of the flattened sides is decorated with an image of a lotus flower pond, enclosed in a lobed panel. The protruding sides, on the other hand, depict an image of bamboo trees and plum blossoms. This particular example seems to have been produced in the late 14th century, when the overall quality of techniques involved in making celadon works sharply deteriorated. In contrast to translucent greenish blue celadon works of the 12th century, this flask has gray greenish glaze due to less refined clay. Furthermore, its rather roughly executed inlaid design shows a clear sign of decline in craftsmanship. Nevertheless, less attention to technical details gave way to a freer style pottery called buncheong in the succeeding centuries. The decor that adorns this flask was done in the inlay technique, a method that fills engraved designs with either white or black soil.