Hollyhock-shaped Cup (1400s): Art, History and Details

Hollyhock-shaped Cup (1400s) is in the Cleveland Museum of Art collection.

The work and its context

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

This very rare porcelain cup is called a hollyhock cup because its rim resembles a hollyhock blossom. This type of cup was produced only in the state-owned kiln for a limited time from the late 1400s to mid-1500s. Like sunflowers, hollyhocks also open their blooms toward the sun, signifying loyalty to the king. According to Korean royal archives, hollyhock cups were used during state banquets when the king offered wine to court officials. Also, a hollyhock-shaped cup was used in tea ceremonies to welcome visiting Chinese diplomats. In comparison to ceramic works of the late Joseon period that favor natural and rustic sensibilities seen in this gallery, this hollyhock cup illustrates the precision and perfection that were core aesthetic values of early Joseon period art.

Object facts

• Title: Hollyhock-shaped Cup
• Date: 1400s
• Culture: Korea, Joseon dynasty (1392–1910)
• Type: Ceramic
• Technique: porcelain
• Dimensions: Overall: 3.6 cm (1 7/16 in.)
• Collection: Korean Art
• Department: Korean Art
• Accession number: 1969.85

A detail from the museum

This cup shaped like a hollyhock flower was used in tea ceremonies to welcome visiting Chinese diplomats during the Joseon period (1392–1910).

Collection credit

Anonymous Gift

Further reading listed by the museum

• Kang, Kyeong-sook. History of Korean Ceramics [韓國陶磁史]. Seoul: Yekyong, 2012.
• Miguk, Han'guk misul ŭl mannada [미국, 한국 미술 을 만나다= Korean art from the United States]. Seoul: National Museum of Korea, 2012.
• Yoon, Hyo-jeong. "The Form and Characteristics of White Porcelain Gyuhwabae (葵花盃) in the Early Joseon Dynasty [조선전기 백자 규화배 葵花盃의 조형과 성격]." Yeoksa wa damron (2013): 413–454.

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.