The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of November 30, 2023

Vase in the Form of a Melon

청자 참외모양 병 (靑磁瓜形甁)

1100s

Korea, Goryeo period

(918-1392)

Celadon

Overall: 25.2 cm (9 15/16 in.)

The Elisabeth Severance Prentiss Collection 1944.164

Location

236 Korean

Fun Fact

The shape of this bottle resembles is a type of yellow muskmelon cultivated mainly in East Asia.

Description

As early as the seventh century, the practice of drinking tea and wine became an important part of elite culture in Korea. Elites of the Goryeo period commissioned a variety of types of utensils and vessels including this elegant bottle, not only to make their drinking experience more exciting, but also to show their appreciation of nature. During the Goryeo period (918-1392), kilns operated in Jeolla and Chungcheong provinces, meeting a soaring demand for high-quality tableware.

Provenance
?–1944
Mrs. Francis F. (Elisabeth Severance Allen) Prentiss [1865–1944], Cleveland Heights, OH, bequest to the Cleveland Museum of Art
1944–
The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
Citations
Catalogue of the Elisabeth Severance Prentiss collection : Bequest of Elisabeth Severance Prentiss, 1944. Cleveland: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1944. Mentioned: p. 74 archive.org
The Cleveland Museum of Art. The Cleveland Museum of Art Handbook. Cleveland: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1958. Mentioned and Reproduced: cat. no. 891 archive.org
The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1966. Cleveland: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1966. Reproduced: p. 272 archive.org
The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1969. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1969. Reproduced: p. 272 archive.org
The Cleveland Museum of Art. Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art 1978. Cleveland: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978. Reproduced: p. 364 archive.org
Pak, Youngsook, and Roderick Whitfield. Handbook of Korean Art: Earthenware and Celadon. London: Laurence King, 2003.
Goryeo Dynasty: Korea's Age of Enlightenment, 918-1392. San Francisco: Asian Art Museum, 2003.
Jang, Nam-won. "The Tea and Celadons during the Goryeo Dynasty: Considering the Celadon Tea Utensils [고려시대 茶文化와 靑瓷]." Musulsa nondan (2007): 129-162. www.dbpia.co.kr
Korean Celadons, the Best under Heaven [천하제일비색청자]. Seoul: National Museum of Korea, 2012.
Goryeo: The Glory of Korea [대고려, 그 찬란한 도전]. Seoul: National Museum of Korea, 2018.
Sparkles of Jade: Goryeo Celadon [高麗青磁 : ヒスイのきらめき]. Ōsaka: Ōsaka: Shiritsu Tōyō Tōji Bijutsukan, 2018.
Ch'a, Mi-rae, Kwi-suk An, Cleveland Museum of Art, and 국외소재문화재재단. The Korean Collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art. Edited by An Min-hŭi. First edition, English ed. Overseas Korean Cultural Heritage Series, 16. Seoul, Republic of Korea: Overseas Korean Cultural Heritage Foundation, 2021. Mentioned and reproduced: P. 51
Exhibition history

Korean Ceramics. The Asia Society Museum, New York, NY (organizer) (April 18-June 2, 1968); Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto M5S 2C6, Canada (July 15-August 30, 1968); The Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago, IL (October 1-November 15, 1968).

Ink, Paper, and Brush - Korean Gallery 236 Rotation. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (July 24, 2019-January 26, 2020).

Source URL: https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1944.164