Bottle with Chrysanthemum Design (1200s-1300s): Art, History and Details

Bottle with Chrysanthemum Design (1200s-1300s) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection.

The work and its context

The museum's open-access catalogue describes the work:

This rare long-neck celadon wine bottle is inlaid with white wild chrysanthemums, symbols of both the poem "Drinking Wine" and blessings of longevity. One root has three stems with tiny white blossoms. The damaged lip was repaired with gold lacquer. Korean Celadons Repaired with Gold Termed kintsugi (literally meaning “gold joinery”) in Japanese, this method of repair highlights broken parts with glittering gold mixed with lacquer. Initiated in 15th-century Japan, the technique follows a popular aesthetic concept called wabi-sabi, which finds beauty in imperfect things and continued to be practiced throughout the modern period in East Asia. Goryeo celadons were considered extremely rare treasures among modern collectors; thus, the broken condition of these examples is brilliantly highlighted in gold lacquer on the repaired spouts, handle, and lid.

Object facts

• Title: Bottle with Chrysanthemum Design
• Date: 1200s-1300s
• Culture: Korea, Goryeo dynasty (918–1392)
• Type: Ceramic
• Technique: Celadon ware with inlaid white and black slip decoration
• Dimensions: Diameter: 14.7 cm (5 13/16 in.); Overall: 40.4 cm (15 7/8 in.)
• Collection: Korean Art
• Department: Korean Art
• Accession number: 1918.454

A detail from the museum

Termed kintsugi (literally meaning “gold joinery”) in Japanese, this method of repairing broken parts with glittering gold mixed with lacquer was extensively used for ceramic works in the Goryeo period, such as this one.

Collection credit

Gift of John L. Severance

Further reading listed by the museum

• Jang, Nam-won. "The Tea and Celadons during the Goryeo Dynasty : Considering the Celadon Tea Utensils [고려시대 茶文化와 靑瓷]." Misulsa nondan (2007): 129-162.
• Goryeo: The Glory of Korea [대고려, 그 찬란한 도전]. Seoul: National Museum of Korea, 2018.
• Lee, Young-hee. "The Study on Techniques and their Interrelations among Craft Arts of the Goryeo Dynasty [고려시대 공예기법 연구 상호관련성을 중심으로]." Misulsa hakbo 22 (2004): 133-170.

View the collection record

See the museum's photographs and full catalogue entry. Catalogue text is reproduced from the Cleveland Museum of Art's open-access data, with HTML formatting removed. This object and its supplied image are designated CC0.