Accession Number2004/1.279
TitleWhite Porcelain Square Water Dropper with Openwork Cloud and Crane Design
Artist(s)KoreanArtist NationalityKorean (culture or style)Object Creation Datelate 19th centuryMedium & Supportporcelain with copper underglaze paintingDimensions 2 3/8 x 3 3/16 x 3 9/16 in. (6 x 8 x 9 cm)
Credit LineGift of Bruce and Inta Hasenkamp and Museum purchase made possible by Elder and Mrs. Sang-Yong NamLabel copyA crane silhouetted against an openwork background soars across the top of this square water dropper, while clouds painted with underglaze copper adorn three sides. A lizard climbs up the fourth side, his open mouth forming the spout. The extraordinary workmanship of this piece suggests that it was made for a special patron.
Maribeth Graybill, The Enduring Art of the Korean Potter, December 12, 2004-November 6, 2005
Subject matterThe crane is a symbol of nobility, spirituality, and long life, making it a creature of symbolic significance to a scholar or the patron who commissioned the water dropper.
Physical DescriptionA square porcelain water dropper. The porcelain is white and there is an image of a lizard or dragon on the top. Clouds are depicted on the sides with the image of a flying crane on the front of the square. The white glaze has chipped of or is thin in places, revealing the copper underglaze.
This is a cubic water dropper featuring an openwork design of a crane with wings spread on the upper face. The spout is in the shape of a newt; it is designed in the way that water drops from the mouth of the newt. The side walls feature cloud designs in copper red which were blackened during firing. The entire foot was glazed, but the glaze was wiped away from the foot, on which were placed fine sand support during firing.
[Korean Collection, University of Michigan Museum of Art (2014) p.182]
Primary Object Classification Ceramic Primary Object Typewater dropperCollection AreaAsianRightsIf you are interested in using an image for a publication, please visit
http://umma.umich.edu/request-image for more information and to fill out the online Image Rights and Reproductions Request Form.
Keywords
Chosen (ancient)
ceramics (object genre)
vessels (containers)