【Period】:Song dynasty
【CAT】 :Porcelain
【Size】 :Height 35.2cm, mouth diameter 8.3cm, base diameter 12.3cm
Excavated from a Northern Song tomb in the Mufu Hill in Nanjing. Collected by the Nanjing Municipal Museum.
This porcelain vase has a thick mouth rim, a flat lip that turns outwards, a stout neck, slightly broad shoulders, a long and round belly, a contracted shin, and a shallow ring foot. The vase has a yellowish white body. Brown glaze, which is lustrous, smooth, and soft, is applied to the neck and the edge of the bottom of the vase. The body of the vase is decorated with interlocking curly grass, which are shallowly carved and have thin lines. Despite the many tangled stems and leaves, they are arranged in a harmonious way. The decorative lines are fluid and smooth. The beauty of harmony and liveliness is achieved through changes in the straightness and thickness of the lines. As the curly grass pattern first became popular in the Tang dynasty, it is also called the “Tang grass pattern”. The pattern was widely used on products of Jizhou kiln, Yaozhou kiln, Cizhou kiln and other kilns in the Song dynasty as side ornaments. However, a body fully covered with the curly grass pattern can hardly be seen on porcelain products from Jizhou kiln in the Song dynasty.