Hare’s Fur, Tortoiseshell, and Partridge Feather:
Chinese Brown- and Black-glazed Ceramics, 400-1400
By: Robert D. Mowry

Review by on March 27th, 2008 // Filed under Song Dynasty


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This volume is the catalog of the first exhibition to feature this type of ware which was first made in the Han (206 B.C.-220 A.D.), reached the golden age during the Song, Jin, and Yuan periods (10th-13th centuries). The title of the book derives from the names of markings on these wares. In the West, it is called temmoku. The catalogue is of the 1996 exhibition of Chinese Brown- and Black-glazed Ceramics 400-1400 CE, but the essays, photographs and notes on the 112 artifacts exhibited will be of lasting interest. There is specialist essays on glazed ceramics, on the Jian tea ware imported into Japan, and on technical considerations in ceramic creation. With illustrated descriptions and provenance notes on the 112 artifacts exhibited. With map, chronology and bibliography.

“This groundbreaking catalogue is the first of its kind to examine the exquisite Chinese brown- and black-glazed wares (including those commonly known as “Temmoku”), tracing their evolution and development from the fifth to the fifteenth century. Illustrated with fine and important pieces from famous museum and private collections, it includes excellent essays and definitive entries by Robert D. Mowry, with contributions on specific historical and technical aspects by Eugene Farrell and Nicole Coolidge Rousmaniere. Reviewed by many experts, this book has become a standard textbook for students of Chinese ceramics and an essential reference for collectors, scholars, and other interested readers.”

Highly recommended.

Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Art Museums, 1996.
Format: Paperback, 280 pages
Published: 1997, USA, 1st Edition
ISBN: 0916724883

One Response to “Hare’s Fur, Tortoiseshell, and Partridge Feather:
Chinese Brown- and Black-glazed Ceramics, 400-1400
By: Robert D. Mowry

  1. A definitive work and clearly IMO, THE leading publication on Brown/Black glazed ceramics. Extremely well researched, written and presented, it covers the full range of the subject matter. Absolutely essential if you want to begin to understand the subject. A must also for anybody who has an interest in early Chinese ceramics.

    Posted by Evan Henning

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