Cabinet E: Shelf 2
Selections from the James Marshall Plumer Collection
James Marshall Plumer (1899-1960) was a source of knowledge and inspiration at the University of Michigan. A researcher and archeologist, Plumer was known for passing his enthusiasm for East Asian art on to his students; through a gift fund established by his colleagues and family upon his death, his influence continues to be felt. Plumer also produced an impressive body of research on Chinese ceramics, making significant contributions to the knowledge of Tenmoku ware.
Tenmoku ware, originally produced during the Song dynasty (960–1279) in kilns of the Tianmu mountains in China’s Fujian province, is characterized by what appear to be oil spots in the surface of black and brown glazes. The use of iron oxide is responsible for these dark colors, and the faster a piece was cooled, the darker the color would become. In China the ware was named Jian after the kiln that produced it. Jian ware was used at the nearby monasteries in the Tianmu mountains, where many Japanese priests made pilgrimages to study Zen Buddhism during the thirteenth century. The monks returned to Japan with Jian ware teabowls, which became prized by the Ashikaga shoguns and used in the tea ceremony. Due to the widespread popularity of Jian ware in Japan, the pieces came to be known by the Japanese name for the Tian Mu mountains, Tenmoku. As demand for tenmoku bowls increased, they were not only imported into but produced in Japan as well.
Japanese
Covered Bowl, Satsuma ware
stoneware with iron glaze
5 3/4 in. x 7 3/16 in. x 6 5/16 in. ( 14.6 cm x 18.2 cm x 16 cm )
Gift of Mrs. Caroline I. Plumer for the James Marshall Plumer Collection
Chinese
Teabowl
stoneware with glaze
2 3/4 in x 4 7/8 in x 4 7/8 in (6.99 cm x 12.38 cm x 12.38 cm)
Gift of Mrs. Caroline I. Plumer for the James Marshall Plumer Collection
Chinese
Teabowl
stoneware with glaze
2 in x 4 1/4 in x 4 1/4 in (5.08 cm x 10.8 cm x 10.8 cm)
Gift of Mrs. Caroline I. Plumer for the James Marshall Plumer Collection
Chinese
Teabowl
stoneware with glaze
2 3/8 in x 5 in x 5 in (6.03 cm x 12.7 cm x 12.7 cm)
Gift of Mrs. Caroline I. Plumer for the James Marshall Plumer Collection
Chinese
Bowl
porcelain with glaze
1 3/4 in x 7 1/8 in x 7 1/8 in (4.4 cm x 18.1 cm x 18.1 cm)
Gift of Mrs. Caroline I. Plumer for the James Marshall Plumer Collection
Chinese
Teabowl
stoneware with glaze
2 in x 4 1/8 in (5 cm x 10.5 cm)
Gift of Mrs. Caroline J. Plumer
Chinese
Teabowl
stoneware with glaze
2 1/8 in x 4 7/8 in x 4 7/8 in (5.4 cm x 12.38 cm x 12.38 cm)
Gift of Mrs. Caroline I. Plumer for the James Marshall Plumer Collection
Chinese
Teabowl
stoneware with glaze
2 1/16 in x 3 3/4 in (5.24 cm x 9.53 cm);2 1/16 in (5.24 cm)
The James Marshall Plumer Memorial Collection
Chinese
Teabowl
Stoneware with glaze (underfired with crawling)
1 15/16 in x 4 1/4 in (4.92 cm x 10.8 cm);1 15/16 in (4.92 cm)
The James Marshall Plumer Memorial Collection
Chinese
Drapery (fragment of a figure, possibly from thigh area)
Stone
7 1/2 in. x 5 1/4 in. x 3 in. ( 19.05 cm x 13.34 cm x 7.62 cm )
Gift of Mrs. Caroline I. Plumer for the James Marshall Plumer Collection
Chinese
Buddha, seated in the padmasana pose, in dhyana mudra, flanked by two donor figures and with a mandorla of the seven Buddhas of the past (fragment of a stele)
stone
9 1/4 in x 10 1/4 in x 2 1/2 in (23.5 cm x 26.04 cm x 6.35 cm)
Gift of Mrs. Caroline I. Plumer for the James Marshall Plumer Collection
Chinese
Teabowl
stoneware with glaze
1 3/4 in x 3 3/4 in x 3 3/4 in (4.4 cm x 9.5 cm x 9.5 cm)
Gift of Mrs. Caroline I. Plumer for the James Marshall Plumer Collection