Page 62 - Korean Buncheong Ceramics, Samsung Museum Collection (great book)

Some of the more unusual types of vessels — such as drum-shaped bottles (see cats. 13, 23)
and flask-shaped pieces (see cats. 30, 11) — have rare counterparts in contemporary porcelain
(see fig. 1.8) and sometimes in black-glazed stoneware (fig. 2.2). Precedents for the bottle with
two flattened sides may be found in much earlier glazed stoneware (the so-called pilgrim jugs) of
3
the Six Dynasties and Tang China, whose source can in turn probably be traced to Central Asia.
However, there are no contemporary parallels in fifteenth- or sixteenth-century East Asia. Arguably,
the buncheong examples, with their free, robust handling of the clay and extraordinary designs,
present the most arresting marriages of form and decoration.
Objects fashioned from metals such as bronze or silver have provided inspiration for ceramics
throughout history and across cultures, and buncheong ware is no exception. Covered metal bowls
(see fig. 2.3), for example, are likely sources for similar buncheong containers (see cats. 24, 25):
shared features include a bulbous, bottom-heavy bowl with a straight or inward-tapering rim and
tall foot and a ridged rim on the cover (with or without an egg-shaped knob). Though the forms are
derived from metalwork, they acquire a distinctively buncheong look through the application of
white slip and inlaid decoration. Bowls without covers, particularly those with curvy contours and
out-turned rims, were staples of any buncheong kiln (see cats. 29, 52), alongside dishes and other
tableware. A more unusual variant is the spouted bowl, which usually possesses a low-slung body
formed on the wheel with a pouring spout attached to one side (see cat. 26).

Figure 2.2 Flask-shaped bottle. Korean, Joseon dynasty (1392–1910);
1
late 16th century. Stoneware with black glaze, H. 9 ⁄4 in. (23.5 cm),
W. 7 ⁄2 in. (19.1 cm). The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, Purchase,
1
Parnassus Foundation / Jane and Raphael Bernstein Gift, 2004 (2004.27)

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