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Source Description
This incense box is colorfully decorated with the technique of oxhorn plating. The oxhorn was cut, soaked in water, boiled, and then pressed into thin translucent sheets. Since oxhorns are usually rather small, dozens of them were required to fully decorate even a small wooden object. The lid of this container is colorfully illustrated with the imagery of a dragon amid clouds deemed as an auspicious symbol, and its side presents flying dragon and phoenix following one after another.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
154239
label
Incense Box with Dragon Design
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
154239
contentType
object
title
Incense Box with Dragon Design
description
This incense box is colorfully decorated with the technique of oxhorn plating. The oxhorn was cut, soaked in water, boiled, and then pressed into thin translucent sheets. Since oxhorns are usually rather small, dozens of them were required to fully decorate even a small wooden object. The lid of this container is colorfully illustrated with the imagery of a dragon amid clouds deemed as an auspicious symbol, and its side presents flying dragon and phoenix following one after another.
date
1900s
citation
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q79941006
genreSpecific
Miscellaneous
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Diameter: 7.2 cm (2 13/16 in.); Overall: 3.6 cm (1 7/16 in.)
cul
Korea, Joseon dynasty (1392–1910)
accession
1988.54
Source extras
tec
Painted wood with flattened ox-horn inlay
tombstone
Incense Box with Dragon Design (용무늬 화각함 [龍文華角函]), 1900s. Korea, Joseon dynasty (1392–1910). Painted wood with flattened ox-horn inlay; diameter: 7.2 cm (2 13/16 in.); overall: 3.6 cm (1 7/16 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund, 1988.54
titleInOriginalLanguage
용무늬 화각함 [龍文華角函]
collection
Korean Art
didYouKnow
This box is made of small flattened pieces of oxhorn. Since oxhorn is rather small, possibly dozens of them were used to fully decorate even a small wooden object like this box.
citations
citation
“The Year in Review for 1988.” <em>The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art</em>, vol. 76, no. 2, 1989, pp. 30–75.
page_number
Mentioned: p. 75, no. 218
citation
Ye, Yong-hae. "Hwagakjang." <em>Ye Yong-hae j</em>eonjip<em>. </em>Seoul: Daewonsa, 1997.
citation
Jeong, Myeong-ho. "Hangukgongye gwahakgisulbaldalsa: hwagakgongyee daehan yeongureul jungsimeuro [韓國工藝 科學技術發達史: 華角工藝에 대한 연구를 중심으로]." <em>Silhaksasang yeongu </em>15-16 (January 2000): 543–612.
citation
<em>Treasures from Korea: Arts and Culture of the Joseon Dynasty, 1392-1910</em>. Philadelphia: Philadelphia Museum of Art, 2014.
citation
Hong, Sun-ah. "A Study on Phoenix Pattern of Hwagak Craft from Late Chosun Period to Early 20th Century [화각공예(華角工藝)의 특성에 관한 연구 : 화각함 중심으로]." <em>Yeoksaminsokhak </em>50 (June 2016): 277–309.
creditline
Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund
updatedAt
2026-05-29 07:58:32.693000
sourceId
154239
dept
Korean Art
coll
Korean Art
med
Painted wood with flattened ox-horn inlay
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
fbbdcc51b0f40c1e