Celadon Gourd-shaped Ewer with Lotus Design in Underglaze Copper

Basic information

Designation

National Treasure No.133

Category

Craft

Era

고려시대

Designated year

1970

Location

용산구, 서울특별시— 서울특별시 용산구 이태원로55길 60-16 (한남동, 삼성박물관 리움)

Coordinates

37.536528, 126.996187

The ewer (height: 33.2cm bottom diameter: 11.4cm), which dates back to the mid-Goryeo Period (877-1394), has a gourd-shaped body whose surface is covered with lotus leaves. Its lid looks like a flower bud. Its neck is adorned with lotus leaves as well as the figure of a child embracing a lotus bud. Its handle looks like a slightly bent scrolling vine with the figure of a frog seated at the top. Its spout looks like a rolled lotus leaf. The technique of adorning blue celadon with cinnabar was used in the early 12th Century, but artworks ostentatiously adorned with cinnabar-made patterns were thought to have appeared for the first time only after the 13th Century. This piece, showing the cinnabar-adorned edges and veins of lotus leaves, was unearthed from the tomb of Choe Hang in Ganghwa, Gyeonggi-do. The piece was presumed to date back to the reign of King Gojong (r.1213-1259) of the Goryeo Dynasty. Its splendid cinnabar color makes it a precious material for those studying Goryeo Celadon.

Location