Rectangular dish with design of iris
date: label: Date
content: mid 18th century
label: Period
content: Edo period
name: label: Artist
content: Ogata Ihachi (Kyoto Kenzan II) (active 1720-1760)
notes: label: Description
content: Tray, oblong, in the shape of a poetry card (tanzaku) [Jpn].
label: Description
content: Brilliant cream-white, crackled, lead glaze with rich violet-blue and emerald-green underglaze.
label: Signatures
content: Mosha Korin ga Kenzan [kao] [Jpn].
label: Label
content: The analogue for this shape is a paper strip called tanzaku, used for inscribing poems. "Tanzaku dishes" were made by the first Kenzan throughout his career. Those, however, are inscribed with poetry while this piece is painted. The theme, as indicated by the motif of iris, is the "eight bridges" from the Tales of Ise. In this context, the rectangular dish could also be interpreted as one of the planks of the bridge across the iris swamp.
label: Provenance
content: To 1896
label: Provenance
content: Bunkio Matsuki (1867-1940), Boston, to 1896 [1]
label: Provenance
content: From 1896 to 1919
label: Provenance
content: Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919), purchased from Bunkio Matsuki in 1896 [2]
label: Provenance
content: From 1920
label: Provenance
content: Freer Gallery of Art, gift of Charles Lang Freer in 1920 [3]
label: Provenance
content: Notes:
label: Provenance
content: [1] See Original Pottery List, Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Archives.
label: Provenance
content: [2] See note 1.
label: Provenance
content: [3] The original deed of Charles Lang Freer's gift was signed in 1906. The collection was received in 1920 upon the completion of the Freer Gallery.
label: Collection
content: Freer Gallery of Art Collection
label: Exhibition History
content: Arts of Japan: Edo Aviary and Poetic License (February 2 to August 4, 2013)
label: Exhibition History
content: Poetic License: Making Old Worlds New (February 2 to August 4, 2013)
label: Exhibition History
content: The Potter's Brush: The Kenzan Style in Japanese Ceramics (December 9, 2001 to October 27, 2002)
label: Previous custodian or owner
content: Bunkio Matsuki 松木文恭 (1867-1940) (C.L. Freer source)
label: Previous custodian or owner
content: Charles Lang Freer (1854-1919)
place: label: Origin
content: Kyoto, Kyoto prefecture, Japan
topic: label: Topic
content: ceramic
label: Topic
content: Edo period (1615 - 1868)
label: Topic
content: iris
label: Topic
content: poetry
label: Topic
content: Japan
label: Topic
content: Japanese Art
label: Topic
content: Charles Lang Freer collection
setName: label: Related Online Resources
content: Google Arts & Culture
label: See more items in
content: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery Collection
creditLine: label: Credit Line
content: Gift of Charles Lang Freer
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: Freer Gallery of Art and Arthur M. Sackler Gallery
identifier: label: Accession Number
content: F1896.56a-c
objectType: label: Type
content: Container
objectRights: label: Restrictions & Rights
content: CC0
physicalDescription: label: Medium
content: White clay with enamels and iron pigment under transparent lead glaze
label: Dimensions
content: H x W x D: 42.5 x 8.2 x 2.4 cm (16 3/4 x 3 1/4 x 15/16 in)