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Source Description
This beautiful vase, called a meiping, is a testimony to the extremely high standards demanded for imperial white porcelain of the Yongle period. It is exquisitely potted and subtly decorated with "hidden decoration" (anhua) incised into the body. The clear glaze over the white body has a luster and purity; the white color radiates with a soft glow like melting snow, described by the Chinese connoisseurs as tianbai, or "sweetwhite." Tianbai wares were produced for use in imperial offerings and have always been considered a great achievement of the Yongle period.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
140168
label
Meiping Vase with Cloud Collars and Peony Sprays
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
140168
contentType
object
title
Meiping Vase with Cloud Collars and Peony Sprays
description
This beautiful vase, called a meiping, is a testimony to the extremely high standards demanded for imperial white porcelain of the Yongle period. It is exquisitely potted and subtly decorated with "hidden decoration" (anhua) incised into the body. The clear glaze over the white body has a luster and purity; the white color radiates with a soft glow like melting snow, described by the Chinese connoisseurs as tianbai, or "sweetwhite." Tianbai wares were produced for use in imperial offerings and have always been considered a great achievement of the Yongle period.
date
1403–24
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q60755758
genreSpecific
Ceramic
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Diameter: 20.3 cm (8 in.); Overall: 32.1 cm (12 5/8 in.)
cul
China, Jiangxi province, Jingdezhen kilns, Ming dynasty (1368-1644), Yongle period (1403-1424)
accession
1964.167
Source extras
tec
porcelain with incised decoration and white glaze
tombstone
Meiping Vase with Cloud Collars and Peony Sprays, 1403–24. China, Jiangxi province, Jingdezhen kilns, Ming dynasty (1368-1644), Yongle period (1403-1424). Porcelain with incised decoration and white glaze; diameter: 20.3 cm (8 in.); overall: 32.1 cm (12 5/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Severance and Greta Millikin Collection, 1964.167
collection
China - Ming Dynasty
citations
citation
Cleveland Museum of Art, and Jenifer Neils. <em>The World of Ceramics: Masterpieces from the Cleveland Museum of Art. </em>Cleveland: The Museum in cooperation with Indiana University Press, 1982.
page_number
no. 122
citation
Cleveland Museum of Art, and Sherman E. Lee. <em>The Colors of Ink: Chinese Paintings and Related Ceramics from the Cleveland Museum of Art</em>. [New York]: Asia Society; distributed by New York Graphic Society, 1974.
page_number
no. 66
citation
Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Catalogue of the Severance and Greta Millikin Collection. </em>Cleveland, Ohio: Cleveland Museum of Art, 1990.
page_number
no. 43
citation
Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>The CMA Companion: A Guide to the Cleveland Museum of Art</em>. Cleveland: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2014.
page_number
Mentioned and reproduced: P. 101
citation
Giuffrida, Noelle. <em>Separating Sheep from Goats: Sherman E. Lee and Chinese Art Collecting in Postwar America</em>. Oakland, California: University of California Press, 2018.
page_number
Reproduced: p. 123, fig. 71
creditline
Severance and Greta Millikin Collection
updatedAt
2026-05-29 07:11:03.813000
sourceId
140168
dept
Chinese Art
coll
China - Ming Dynasty
med
porcelain with incised decoration and white glaze
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
e7f7e42a2d32f94b