備前押印波状文甕|Widemouthed jar (kame) with wave pattern

Unknown

late 16th–early 17th century · Stoneware with incisions and fire marks (Bizen ware) · Asian Art

A delicately incised, repeating wave pattern graces the shoulder of this widemouthed, unglazed vessel. The placement of the vessel in the wood-burning kiln, combined with the potter’s control of the fire, airflow, and ash caused “kiln transformations” (kamahen) such as the dark reddish patches on the body and lip. Variations in surface color are the result of haphazard contact with wood ash.

Artist

Unknown

Date

late 16th–early 17th century

Medium

Stoneware with incisions and fire marks (Bizen ware)

Culture

Japan

Department

Asian Art

Credit line

Mary Griggs Burke Collection, Gift of the Mary and Jackson Burke Foundation, 2015