Buncheong Prunus Vase with Inlaid Fish Design

Buncheong Prunus Vase with Inlaid Fish Design is a celadon prunus vase made in the early Joseon period, 30.0 cm high, with a mouth diameter of 4.6 cm and a base diameter of 10.4 cm. The prunus vase form that had been popular in Goryeo cannot be found at all among Joseon white porcelain, but its line continues on in buncheong ware, a grey-blue stoneware coated with white slip and decorated with stamped, inlaid or painted designs, and this piece shows the transitional appearance of celadon moving toward buncheong ware. The thick mouth still shows the look of celadon at its height, but the decoration is intricate, using motifs found on buncheong ware such as bead patterns, transformed cloud shapes and lotus designs. On the four sides of the body, double concentric circles were drawn around bead patterns, and within them two fish were each inlaid in black-and-white, with the waves rendered in black inlay. Outside the concentric circles the ground is filled densely with dots. Above, in four places, flying cranes are shown in black-and-white inlay, and around the waist flowers and grasses are rendered in an abstracted form, with lotus flowers drawn below them. Around the rim of the mouth, petals are simply expressed in black-and-white inlay, and below them runs a band of scrolling vine. A glaze close to celadon glaze with a pale bluish tinge was used, so the transitional character of the piece can also be seen in its glaze.

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Where it is

Region

Yongsan-gu, Seoul

Designation

Treasure · 보물