VesselsChinese6th-7th century

Circular tray with three ring-form-feet and five cups

late 6th-early 7th century

Description

Five matching cups, each with wide, rimless mouth and sides tapering inward to small, slightly splayed circular foot; large circular tray with short, gently rounded sides and three ring-form feet attached to the base at equidistant intervals; white porcelain with transparent glaze tinged with pale celadon green; bases of cups unglazed and each marked with the ideograph 波 (bo) brushed in red ink on the base after firing; the center of the tray base unglazed. From northern China; Hebei or Henan province.

Classification

Vessels

Technique

White ware

Medium

White stoneware with transparent glaze tinged with green

Culture

Chinese

Period

Sui (581-618) to Tang (618-907) dynasty

Century

6th-7th century

Division

Asian and Mediterranean Art

Department

Department of Asian Art

Dimensions

tray: H. 5.8 x Diam. 25.8 cm (2 5/16 x 10 3/16 in.) cups: H. 7.4 x Diam. 8.9 cm (2 15/16 x 3 1/2 in.)

Provenance

[Blitz Chinese Ceramics and Works of Art, Amsterdam, December 1999] sold; to Walter C. Sedgwick Foundation, Woodside, CA (1999-2006), partial gift; to Harvard University Art Museums, 2006.