Teapot in form of prunus branch
Datelate 17th century - early 18th century
Maker
Chinese
Label TextYixing potters deftly integrated nature into the dynamic design of this teapot. Made with iron-rich clay from Jiangsu province, called “purple sand,” Yixing wares were favored by the literati class in the sophisticated pastime of tea-drinking. From the Ming period, instead of whisking powdered tea cakes with hot water in a tea bowl, boiling water was added to tea leaves to steep in ceramic pots, which enhanced the aroma. The artist’s signature is an impressed square seal, found on this pot and the adjacent water coupe.
Object number41.3
Photo CreditPhoto: Susan Cole
Exhibition HistoryPortland, Oregon, Portland Art Museum, Gift to a City: Masterworks from the Eugene Fuller Memorial Collection in the Seattle Art Museum, Nov. 3 - 28, 1965. Cat. no. 48.
Seattle, Washington, Seattle Art Museum, Pure Amusements: Wealth, Leisure, and Culture in Late Imperial China, Dec. 24, 2016 - May 15, 2022.Published References"Gift to a City" exhibition catalogue. Portland, OR: Portland Art Museum, 1965, cat. no. 48
"Selected Works." Seattle, WA: Seattle Art Museum, 1991, p. 168Credit LineEugene Fuller Memorial Collection
Dimensions4 1/4 x 5 3/4 x 4 3/8 in. (10.8 x 14.61 x 11.11 cm)
MediumYixing ware; reddish-brown stoneware with colored slip
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