The Cleveland Museum of Art

Collection Online as of March 13, 2025

Spoon with Fish-Tail Design

918–1392
(918–1392)
bronze
Overall: 26.9 cm (10 9/16 in.)
General Income Fund 1918.508
Location: not on view

Did You Know?

Bronze spoons are the most common burial item. Scholars have proposed that toward the end of the 14th century, Koreans enjoyed meat-based soups more than any other dishes, explaining why spoons became common household items as well as burial goods.

Description

Many of Goryeo period spoons like this one feature a curved handle that splits into a jagged fishtail design. This fishtail design is not unique to Korea; it was also widely used in the area under the rule of two non-Han Chinese states: Liao (907–1125) and Jin (1115–1234). These seemingly ordinary objects testify to exciting material interactions between the Goryeo dynasty and non-Han Chinese northern states, which were often omitted from the official records.
  • acquired by Langdon Warner in Korea.
  • Goryeo Dynasty: Korea's Age of Enlightenment, 918-1392. San Francisco: Asian Art Museum, 2003.
    Yun, Seong-jae. “The Special Meanings of Spoons and Chopsticks in the Goryeo Dynasty [고려시대 분묘출토 청동수저].” Yeoksa wa silhak (2015): 51-68. www.dbpia.co.kr
    Bronze in Life and Art [삶과 예술 속. 청동 靑銅 이야기] National Cheongju Museum (2016).
    Jeong, Eui-do. Changes of Spoons during the Late Goryeo Period [고려후기 숟가락의 변화].” Hanguk jungse gogohak (2017): 139-157. www.dbpia.co.kr
    Goryeo: The Glory of Korea [대고려, 그 찬란한 도전]. Seoul: National Museum of Korea, 2018.
    Horlyck, Charlotte. "The Eternal Link: Grave Goods of the Koryŏ Kingdom (918-1392 CE)." Ars Orientalis, no. 44 (2014): 156-79. www.jstor.org
    MCormick, Sooa. “North of the Border: A preview of the Korean gallery’s new display, coming in January.” Cleveland Art: Cleveland Museum of Art Members Magazine vol. 58. no. 6 (November/December 2018): 16-17. Reproduced: P. 17; Mentioned: P. 16, 17.
    Ch'a, Mi-rae, Kwi-suk An, Cleveland Museum of Art, and 국외소재문화재재단. The Korean Collection of the Cleveland Museum of Art. Edited by An Min-hŭi. First edition, English ed. Overseas Korean Cultural Heritage Series, 16. Seoul, Republic of Korea: Overseas Korean Cultural Heritage Foundation, 2021. Mentioned and reproduced: P. 101
  • Mountains and Rivers Beyond the DMZ – Korean Gallery 236 Rotation. The Cleveland Museum of Art (organizer) (January 21-July 21, 2019).
  • {{cite web|title=Spoon with Fish-Tail Design|url=false|author=|year=918–1392|access-date=13 March 2025|publisher=Cleveland Museum of Art}}

Source URL:

https://www.clevelandart.org/art/1918.508