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Bottle Vase

Culture
Chinese
Date
mid- to late 18th century
Classification
Ceramics, containers
Collection
Asian Art
Current Location
On View, Gallery 230
Dimensions
height: 14 1/2 in. (36.8 cm)
diameter of mouth: 2 1/4 in. (5.7 cm)
diameter of body: 8 1/2 in. (21.6 cm)
diameter of foot: 4 5/8 in. (11.7 cm)
Credit Line
Museum Purchase
Rights
Public Domain
Object Number
152:1915
NOTES
This bottle vase features an opaque, low-fired, mottled glaze commonly known by the English name, “robin’s egg blue.” The glaze, with its speckled turquoise and dark blue colors, was produced from copper oxide and opacified with arsenic. The English term for the glaze probably derives from the distinctive patterns on the surface resembling the bird’s eggs. This vessel is glazed all over the exterior and on the base, except for the foot rim. A few examples of glazes with similar mottled effects dated to the Ming dynasty have been found in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province, and it is possible that this glaze was a Qing revival of an earlier and very rare experiment.

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