Bowl with Lotus and Child Design in Relief

1200s

Bowl with Lotus and Child Design in Relief, 1200s. Korea, Goryeo period (918-1392). Pottery; diameter of mouth: 19.9 cm (7 13/16 in.); overall: 6.5 cm (2 9/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Gift of John L. Severance 1918.478 As early as the seventh century, the practice of drinking tea and wine became an important part of elite leisure culture in Korea. A wide bowl like this example was especially suitable for drinking powdered tea shaved from a compressed tea cake, the most commonly enjoyed type during the Goryeo period. The floral pattern of this bowl was created by a mold with carved patterns.