Artwork Page for Sake Bottle with Three Figures

Details / Information for Sake Bottle with Three Figures

Sake Bottle with Three Figures

late 1700s

Japan, Edo period

(1615–1868)
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Medium
porcelain with overglaze enamel and gold decoration (Hizen ware, Arita type)
Measurements
Diameter: 14.3 cm (5 5/8 in.); with cover: 27.2 cm (10 11/16 in.); without cover: 24.2 cm (9 1/2 in.)
Credit Line
Severance and Greta Millikin Collection 1964.272.a
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
Print

Description

The bottle features three elegantly drawn figures: a beautiful woman, a young man, and a priest. The artist used a fine-haired brush to draw these figures in colored enamel onto the porcelain bottle, which had already been given a clear glaze. A final firing fused the enamel to the form. The name derives from the port of Imari from where Japanese porcelains were shipped to other cities in Japan, China, and Europe.
A white porcelain vessel features a bulbous body and a tall, narrow neck. Decorated with overglaze enamel and gold, the lower body depicts a woman in a patterned kimono with green, red, and purple motifs and a wide black sash. Gold ornaments adorn her dark hair, and a second figure is partially visible to the left. The colorful imagery stands out against the smooth, white glazed surface of the vessel.

Sake Bottle with Three Figures

late 1700s

Japan, Edo period (1615–1868)

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