The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of May 25, 2022

Ornament with Heron and Turtle Design

금동 왜가리·거북무늬 꾸미개 (金銅鷺龜文裝身具)

1100s

Part of a set. See all set records

Korea, Goryeo period

(918-1392)

Bronze

Overall: 3.4 x 2.5 cm (1 5/16 x 1 in.)

Gift of the John Huntington Art and Polytechnic Trust 1917.1044.1

Location

236 Korean

Fun Fact

This metal ornament is part of a decorative brooch once used to hold clothes together.

Description

Metalworking techniques advanced remarkably during the Goryeo period (918–1392). Sophisticated metal objects with intricate designs were used not only as daily accessories, but also as burial goods for commemorating the dead. Traces of fibers found on the backs of these metal ornaments suggest that they were once used as brooches to hold garments together.

Provenance
?-1917
(Yamanaka and Company, New York, NY, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art)
1917-
The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
Citations
Goryeo Dynasty: Korea's Age of Enlightenment, 918-1392. San Francisco: Asian Art Museum, 2003.
Kim, Moon-ja. "A Study on the Ornaments in Goryeo Dynasty [고려 시대 장신구에 대한 연구]." Journal of Korean Traditional Costume 15, vol. 3 (December 2012): 5-21. www.dbpia.co.kr
Sin, Myŏng-hŭi, and Kwang-sŏp Kim. Bronze in Life and Art [삶과 예술 속. 청동 靑銅 이야기]. Ch'ungch'ŏng-bukto Ch'ŏngju-si: Kungnip Ch'ŏngju Pangmulgwan [National Cheongju Museum], 2016.
Goryeo: The Glory of Korea [대고려, 그 찬란한 도전]. Seoul: National Museum of Korea, 2018.
Exhibition history

The Other Side of the Story - Korean Gallery 236 Rotation. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (October 27, 2020-April 25, 2021).

Interpretation of Materiality: Gold (Korean art rotation). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (April 29-October 24, 2021).

Source URL: https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1917.1044.1