Tea ceremony water jar

a: Tea ceremony water jar (mizusashi); b: lacquered wooden lid.
Cylindrical, lacquer cover.
Clay: soft, light brown, stained on base with iron-oxide
Glaze: brilliant yellow, lightly crackled, with green on lip; interior – cream-white, crackled
Decoration: in gray under glaze, green, violet-gray, and red over glaze.
Seal. Eiraku, impressed on base.

Maker(s)
Artist: Eiraku Hozen 永楽保全 (1795-1854)
Historical period(s)
Edo period, 1827-1843
Medium
Pottery with cobalt pigment under opaque white feldspathic glaze and enamels over glaze; lacquered wooden lid
Style
Kyoto ware
Dimensions
H x Diam: 17.8 × 17.9 cm (7 × 7 1/16 in)
Geography
Japan, Kyoto prefecture, Kyoto
Credit Line
Gift of Charles Lang Freer
Collection
Freer Gallery of Art Collection
Accession Number
F1898.489a-b
On View Location
Currently not on view
Classification(s)
Ceramic, Vessel
Type

Tea ceremony water jar (mizusashi)

Keywords
Edo period (1615 - 1868), Japan, Kyoto ware, tea, water
Provenance

To 1898
Yamanaka & Company, to 1898 [1]

From 1898 to 1919
Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Yamanaka & Company in 1898 [2]

From 1920
Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]

Notes:

[1] See Original Pottery List, L. 97, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives. The majority of Charles Lang Freer’s purchases from Yamanaka & Company were made at its New York branch. Yamanaka & Company maintained branch offices, at various times, in Boston, Chicago, London, Peking, Shanghai, Osaka, Nara, and Kyoto. During the summer, the company also maintained seasonal locations in Newport, Bar Harbor, and Atlantic City.

[2] See note 1.

[3] The original deed of Charles Lang Freer's gift was signed in 1906. The collection was received in 1920 upon the completion of the Freer Gallery.

Previous Owner(s) and Custodian(s)

Charles Lang Freer 1854-1919
Yamanaka and Co. (C.L. Freer source) 1917-1965

Description

a: Tea ceremony water jar (mizusashi); b: lacquered wooden lid.
Cylindrical, lacquer cover.
Clay: soft, light brown, stained on base with iron-oxide
Glaze: brilliant yellow, lightly crackled, with green on lip; interior - cream-white, crackled
Decoration: in gray under glaze, green, violet-gray, and red over glaze.
Seal. Eiraku, impressed on base.

Published References
  • Beatrice Hohenegger. Liquid Jade: The Story of Tea from East to West., 1st ed. New York. p. 220.
Collection Area(s)
Japanese Art
Web Resources
Google Cultural Institute
SI Usage Statement

Usage Conditions Apply

There are restrictions for re-using this image. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.

The information presented on this website may be revised and updated at any time as ongoing research progresses or as otherwise warranted. Pending any such revisions and updates, information on this site may be incomplete or inaccurate or may contain typographical errors. Neither the Smithsonian nor its regents, officers, employees, or agents make any representations about the accuracy, reliability, completeness, or timeliness of the information on the site. Use this site and the information provided on it subject to your own judgment. The Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery welcome information that would augment or clarify the ownership history of objects in their collections.

citation | Save this image How to download an image | Request Permission | Terms of Use