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Bowl

Maker Unidentified artist

DateUnified Silla Dynasty (668-935)

MediumStoneware

Dimensions2 1/16 × 4 15/16 inches (5.2 × 12.5 cm)

CultureKorean

ClassificationsCeramics

Credit LineGift of Colonel John R. Fox

Terms

Ceramics
Decorative Arts
Bowl
Vessel
Stoneware
Korean

Object number67.441

Label CopyBRIEF DESCRIPTION This is a ceramic bowl with a fitted lid. It was made to hold the ashes from a cremation. WHERE WAS IT MADE? This bowl was made in Korea during the Unified Silla period (668-935). During this period, the Korean peninsula was unified with the help of the Tang dynasty in China. HOW WAS IT MADE? This bowl and its accompanying lid were made on a potter’s wheel. The potter’s wheel came to Korea from China over 2000 years ago, and enabled potters to make vessels more quickly and more uniformly. The interior of the bowl was smoothed by hand. Impressions of circles and water drops decorate the exterior surface, which is evenly covered with a greenish-brown ash glaze. This type of glazing is achieved by covering the surface of the vessel with wood ash. The high temperatures of the kiln cause the ash to melt into a glaze when the vessel is fired. HOW WAS IT USED? Covered bowls like this one were used to hold the ashes of deceased Buddhists, who practiced cremation. This special container was buried singly, without the additional goods that were included in tomb burials. WHY DOES IT LOOK LIKE THIS? Small funerary vessels such as this one, containing ashes from a cremation, were placed inside a larger container made of ceramic or stone. In general, lidded bowls became popular during this period, and were decorated with stamped designs.

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