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Source Description
This type of wide-mouthed bowl was used every day in Korea, not exclusively for tea drinking. But when it was introduced to Japan around the early 16th century, its imperfect appearance, which evokes the aesthetics of <em>wabi-sabi, </em>caused it to be repurposed as a tea bowl. Korean tea bowls were circulated as a item of foreign luxury among Japanese military elites. Possibly produced in one of the kilns established by the trading office (Waegwan) in Busan, southern Gyeongsang province, this type of tea bowl was sold to Japanese tea bowl collectors. According to a historical record dated to 1641, one trading boat shipped more than 14,000 tea bowls to Japan.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
155748
label
Tea Bowl
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
155748
contentType
object
title
Tea Bowl
description
This type of wide-mouthed bowl was used every day in Korea, not exclusively for tea drinking. But when it was introduced to Japan around the early 16th century, its imperfect appearance, which evokes the aesthetics of <em>wabi-sabi, </em>caused it to be repurposed as a tea bowl. Korean tea bowls were circulated as a item of foreign luxury among Japanese military elites. Possibly produced in one of the kilns established by the trading office (Waegwan) in Busan, southern Gyeongsang province, this type of tea bowl was sold to Japanese tea bowl collectors. According to a historical record dated to 1641, one trading boat shipped more than 14,000 tea bowls to Japan.
date
1700s
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q79944149
genreSpecific
Ceramic
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Overall: 8.1 cm (3 3/16 in.); Diameter of base: 5.5 cm (2 3/16 in.)
cul
Korea, Joseon dynasty (1392–1910)
accession
1991.106
Source extras
tec
stoneware with white slip and overglaze
tombstone
Tea Bowl (분청사기 완 (粉靑沙器碗)), 1700s. Korea, Joseon dynasty (1392–1910). Stoneware with white slip and overglaze; overall: 8.1 cm (3 3/16 in.); diameter of base: 5.5 cm (2 3/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, John L. Severance Fund, 1991.106
titleInOriginalLanguage
분청사기 완 (粉靑沙器碗)
collection
Korean Art
didYouKnow
This type of rustic-looking tea bowl was produced in one of the kilns established by the trading office (Waegwan) in Buan, southern Gyeongsang province, for Japanese tea bowl collectors who admired the beauty of imperfection.
citations
citation
Jeong, Dong-ju. From Joseon Rice Bowl to Yido Tea Bowl [조선 막사발과 이도다완]. Paju: Hangil ateu, 2012.
citation
Hur, Nam-lin. “Korean Tea Bowls (Kōrai Chawan) and Japanese Wabicha: A Story of Acculturation in Premodern Northeast Asia.” <em>Korean Studies</em> 39 (2015): 1–22.
citation
Kang, Mu-Chang. "A Study on the Characteristics of Japanese Made-to-Order Ceramics and the Transition Process of Busan Waegwanyo Kiln - With a focus on Commissioned Tea Bowls [일본 주문 도자기의 특징과 부산 왜관요 변천과정에 관한 연구 - 주문다완(御本茶碗)을 중심으로]."<em> Hankuk dojahak yeongu </em>17, no. 3 (2020): 5-19.<strong><br></strong>
citation
Heo, Hyun-Jung. "Resource Supply and Demand of Waegwanyo in the Late Joseon Dynasty [조선후기 왜관요의 자원 수급]." <em>Hangdo busan </em>no. 39 (2020): 205-239.
creditline
John L. Severance Fund
updatedAt
2026-05-29 08:05:20.780000
sourceId
155748
dept
Korean Art
coll
Korean Art
med
stoneware with white slip and overglaze
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
7d2268a4a237998c