Celadon Vase with Crane
Goryeo Dynasty Potter
Goryeo celadon is considered the finest ceramic art of medieval Korea, produced during the Goryeo dynasty (918–1392). The ware is renowned for its ethereal jade-green glaze, which Chinese and Korean connoisseurs described using poetic metaphors — "the color of the sky after rain," "the green of jade." The secret lay in the precise combination of iron oxide in the glaze and the reduction firing in the kiln, which produced a color that seemed to glow from within. Goryeo potters also developed the sanggam (inlay) technique, unique to Korea: designs were carved or stamped into the unbaked clay, then filled with white or red slip before glazing. When fired, the inlaid designs appeared as subtle patterns beneath the glaze — cranes, clouds, lotus flowers, and willow trees. Crane motifs symbolized longevity, purity, and the aspiration for immortality. So prized was Goryeo celadon that a Song dynasty Chinese emperor wrote that "the first under heaven is Goryeo celadon." The technique was lost after the fall of the Goryeo dynasty and has never been fully replicated, making surviving pieces among the most treasured objects in Korean museums.
Look Closer — Tips for This Artwork
- 1Find the crane in the inlay and look at the tiny lines of white slip — the sanggam technique pressed clay into carved grooves before glazing.
- 2Look at the glaze in a raking light: the colour shifts between jade green and grey-blue, which is why it was called "the colour of the sky after rain".
- 3Count the clouds and willow leaves in the design — each motif carried a wish for longevity or peace.
- 4Notice any small crackle or bubble in the glaze: Goryeo potters prized these effects as natural rather than as faults.
