Page 423 - Art In The Age Of Exploration (Great Section on Chinese Art Ming Dynasty)

Notwithstanding the humble or plebeian From its flat, stable base this jar widens gently
character attributed to punch'ong wares, they also to high taut shoulders, then narrows slightly
enjoyed official patronage. The ceramics destined through the brief neck to a wide mouth with
for official or royal use were deposited in ware- strongly everted lip. The generous opening at the
houses for safekeeping before they were distrib- top is a characteristic feature of the outer of two
uted. Inscriptions, produced usually by incising receptacles which together served as the burial
and slip inlay, exist on a good number of extant vessel for a placenta. The inner jar was narrower
stamped and slip-inlaid punch'ong wares. These and might be provided with loop handles on the
inscriptions include the names of such govern- shoulder for securing a lid. The outer jars were
ment agencies as those in charge of royal house- likewise provided with covers, presumably lost
hold cuisine, entertaining, and ceremony. And in the present example. An outermost casket of
punch'ong wares have been discovered among stone formed a durable protective casing for the
grave goods in princely burials. ceramic jars and their contents. Whereas placenta
Government supervision may in fact have been receptacles of the early Choson period (1392-
instrumental in encouraging more careful crafting 1910) are predominantly from punch'ong kilns, in
of some wares; the present piece, though unin- the later Choson (Yi) period white porcelain was
scribed, reflects meticulous manufacture. Such prevalent. According to Itoh Ikutaro, "Under-
wares were also in aesthetic accord with the new ground burial of the placenta was the custom in
Confucian emphasis that marked the early years Korea from the Three Kingdoms [37 B.C.-668
of the Choson period (1392-1910). The highly A.D.], through the Unified Silla [668-918], Koryo
aristocratic and often precious taste which pre- [918-1392], and Yi [Choson] dynasties. In Yi
vailed in ceramic patronage during the height of times, the royal family installed placenta jars in
Koryo rule gave way to a mood and tenor per- 'placenta chambers' on the peaks of celebrated
fectly at ease with the austere and spartan quality or scenic mountains/ 7
of the new punch'ong wares. M.A.R. The expansive body zone of the present jar
is entirely covered with an impressed and slip-
filled mesh pattern. Above and below this unin-
terrupted field of design are borders of petals
formed by series of roughly parallel incised lines,
2 74 likely a simplified rendering of the ubiquitous
lotus-petal motif. Lotus-petal bands encircling
PLACENTA JAR vessels, usually around the shoulder and just
above the base, were originally inspired by the 2 75
first half of i$th century lotus thrones that supported images of Buddhist
Korean deities. Such was their suitability as a border BOTTLE
punching ware with incised, slip-inlaid, and design that they have continued as a stock decora-
impressed decoration tive device down to the present. An abbreviated late 15th century
7
height 37.8 (i4 / 8) depiction of the key-fret motif (called thunder Korean
references: Gompertz 1968; Rhee 1978, j:pl. 10 pattern in East Asia) decorates the neck. punching ware with slip coating and incised
Ho-Am Art Museum, Kyonggi Province The mesh pattern of the main body zone, called decoration
height 30.5 (12)
a "rope-curtain" design in Korean, is generally references: Gompertz 1968, 25-42; New York 1968
said to have reminded Japanese connoisseurs of
the multifold columns of tiny characters in the The Cleveland Museum of Art
almanacs printed at the Mishima Shrine, on Izu
Peninsula, Shizuoka Prefecture. Therefore the Supported on a strongly cut foot, the gently pear-
name Mishima was applied in Japan to these slip- shaped body narrows to a tall, slender neck, then
decorated wares from Korea, and the term was flares slightly to a modest mouth opening and
extended to punch'ong wares in general, whatever cautiously everted lip. White slip was applied
their slip-inlaid decoration. The term is likewise with a large brush while the piece was turned on
used in the West. An alternate explanation for a wheel or turntable, the coarse brush leaving
the use of the name Mishima, and one that would horizontal striations still visible on the finished
account for its generalized use, is that Japanese bottle. The design was produced by incising
pirates once operated from a group of islands through or scraping away the hardened slip,
called Mishima, and it was these Mishima pirates exposing the darker body fabric. The design is
who first brought punch'ong wares to Japan. organized into two horizontal bands: plump fish
In any case, the Japanese have always greatly occupy the wider one around the belly, and
treasured punch'ong wares. The impromptu sketchily drawn stylized lotus petals encircle the
approach of the Korean potter, the lack of preci- lower and wider part of the neck. The contrast
sion and finish in his works, as well as their between the dark, iron-rich clay body and the pale
natural unpretentiousness, were all qualities that creamy slip makes the design stand out sharply
directly appealed to the sophisticated taste of tea and clearly. The glaze is no more than an unob-
masters in Japan, qualities which we still can trusive window to the design, neutral in color and
easily admire today. M.A.R. perfectly transparent.
422 CIRCA 1492