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Identification and Creation

Object Number
2010.565
Title
Ovoid Bottle with Flat Back, Dish-Shaped Mouth, and Well-Articulated Lip
Classification
Vessels
Work Type
vessel
Date
12th-14th century
Places
Creation Place: East Asia, Korea
Period
Koryŏ dynasty, 918-1392
Culture
Korean
Persistent Link
https://hvrd.art/o/336964

Physical Descriptions

Medium
Light gray stoneware with kiln-blackened surface
Technique
Unglazed
Dimensions
H. 16.3 x Diam. 11.6 cm (6 7/16 x 4 3/8 x 4 9/16 in.)

Provenance

Recorded Ownership History
[through ?, Korea, mid 1960s]; to Jerry Lee Musslewhite (mid 1960s-2009); to Estate of Jerry Lee Musslewhite (2009-2010), sold; to Harvard Art Museums, 2010.

NOTE: Jerry Lee Musslewhite was an employee of the U.S. Department of Defense who worked in the Republic of Korea from 1965 to 1969.

Acquisition and Rights

Credit Line
Harvard Art Museums/Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Purchase through the generosity of Alan J. and Suzanne W. Dworsky
Accession Year
2010
Object Number
2010.565
Division
Asian and Mediterranean Art
Contact
am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu
Permissions

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Descriptions

Description
This ovoid bottle rises from a flat, circular base; it lacks even a hint of a footring. Above the bottle's shoulder, its walls constrict to form a narrow neck and then expand to form the small, dish-shaped mouth with well-articulated lip. The "back" of the bottle is lightly flattened. The bottle's only embellishments are an incised bowstring line around the shoulder and the delicately defined lip that encloses the dished mouth. The bottle is unglazed. Although made of light to medium gray stoneware, which is visible on the flat base, the bottle's exterior walls appear black due to carbon saturation during firing. While it seems to have been accidental on Korean vessels from the Kaya and Silla periods, carbon saturation is such a regular feature of unglazed stoneware vessels made during the Kory? dynasty that it is likely that such vessels were covered with soot (as opposed to ash) before firing to ensure that the surfaces would blacken when heated.

Verification Level

This record was created from historic documentation and may not have been reviewed by a curator; it may be inaccurate or incomplete. Our records are frequently revised and enhanced. For more information please contact the Division of Asian and Mediterranean Art at am_asianmediterranean@harvard.edu