On display
Image of Gallery in South Kensington

Powder Pot

1200-1300 (made)
Artist/Maker
Unknown
Place of origin
Korea (made)

The cosmetic powder pot is of shouldered globular form and covered with a greyish green celadon glaze. It bears inlaid decoration in white and black featuring cranes amongst clouds between rows of small circles and double line borders. There is no spur mark on the base and some of the inlay is stained.

Object details

Categories
Ceramics
Stoneware
Object type
Powder pot
Materials and techniques
Stoneware, thrown, with inlaid decoration under celadon glaze
Celadon
Stoneware
Thrown
Inlaid Celadon
Glazed
Brief description
Powder pot, stoneware with inlaid decoration under a celadon glaze; Korea, Koryo dynasty, 1200-1300
Physical description
The cosmetic powder pot is of shouldered globular form and covered with a greyish green celadon glaze. It bears inlaid decoration in white and black featuring cranes amongst clouds between rows of small circles and double line borders. There is no spur mark on the base and some of the inlay is stained.
Dimensions
  • Height: 4.5cm
  • Diameter: 5cm
Style
Koryo
Gallery label
(05/04/2019)
3. Two celadon cosmetic boxes and a powder pot
Early 13th to early 14th century
Goryeo dynasty (918–1392)

Celadon boxes with domed or flat lids were used to keep cosmetic powders and pastes. These were made of safflower and soot extracts and mixed with oils to create makeup for lips, cheeks and eyebrows. The spherical pot stored face powder made from ground rice and millet, which was used as a complexion-boosting exfoliant. A set of small lidded celadon boxes were sometimes kept inside a larger celadon box of the same shape.

Inlaid celadon

Museum nos. C.563&A-1918 given by Mr Aubrey Le Blond
Museum nos. C.65&A-1910, C.741-1909
Object history
Purchased from Mr. J. S. T. Audley (25 Brook Street, Grosvenor Square, W.), accessioned in 1909. This acquisition information reflects that found in the Asia Department registers, as part of a 2022 provenance research project.
Subject depicted
Cranes (Birds)
Collection
East Asia Collection
Accession number
C.741-1909

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Record createdFebruary 3, 2000
Record URL
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O21801/powder-pot-unknown/
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