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National Treasure

Celadon Tube-shaped Bottle with Willow Design in Underglaze Iron

청자 철화양류문 통형 병 ( 靑磁 鐵畵楊柳文 筒形 甁 )

Heritage Search Detail
Classification National Treasure
Name of Cultural Properties Celadon Tube-shaped Bottle with Willow Design in Underglaze Iron
Quantity 1 Item
Designated Date 1962.12.20
Age Goryeo
Address National Museum of Korea, 137, Seobinggo-ro, Yongsan-gu, Seoul

This celadon bottle of Goryeo (918-1392) features a 31.6 centimeter-tall tubular body decorated with a pair of willows each painted on the opposite side of the bottle in iron red pigment. The body is marked by a straight wall with beveled shoulder, with an everted mouth at the top. The vessel has no notable decoration except the two willows rendered in a delightfully simple manner, exhibiting highly sophisticated aesthetic taste. The bottle is also characterized by blue tints of the glazing around the willows on both sides, creating a painterly effect of trees standing at the side of a pond or a river. Surviving today are a limited number of Goryeo celadon vessels featuring a tubular body as well as designs in underglaze iron red, and this is one of those rare pieces. According to records, the bottle was purchased from a Japanese collector by the Japanese Government-General in Korea in 1931. The appealing proportion, nicely beveled shoulder, and pleasantly simple and unassuming rendering of the decorative motifs make the bottle a great example of the great heritage achieved by Goryeo celadon potters.