Bowl
Unknown Artist
1780
Medium
White porcelain, the outside dipped blue under the glaze covered with design painted in gold; the inside decorated in blue under the glaze, enamel
Dimensions
H. 2 1/2 in. (8.4 cm); Diam. 5 3/8 in. (13.7 cm)
Classification
Ceramics
Culture & Period
Japan · Edo period (1615–1868)
Department
Asian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Charles Stewart Smith, 1893
Accession Number
93.3.106
Art Historical Context
This exquisite porcelain bowl, crafted in Japan during the Edo period (1615–1868) around 1780, exemplifies the refined ceramic artistry of the time. Measuring just 2½ inches high and 5⅜ inches in diameter, its petite scale suggests it may have served for tea ceremonies, sake, or small delicacies, reflecting the era's emphasis on harmonious daily rituals amid Japan's peaceful isolation under the Tokugawa shogunate. The bowl's exterior features a white porcelain body dipped in blue under the glaze, then adorned with intricate gold-painted designs—a luxurious overglaze technique that added opule...