Art Institute of Chicago

Pear Shaped Bottle

Unrecorded artist

Ming dynasty (1368–1644) or later

Attribution

China

Medium

Pear shaped with flattened faces, narrow tapering neck & two scroll handles (conventionalized from dragon forms). Decoration molded in lower relief; all over pattern of fungus scrolls and bats within panel on each side. Buff white stoneware; opaque creamy glaze with flattened faces; narrow tapering neck and 2 scroll handles conventionalized from dragon forms: deeply hollowed base. Buff white stoneware. Opague, rather thick, creamy glaze covers outside, indise of neck and base; none on bottom of footrim. Decoration molded in low relief: band of key fret on each side of neck, and outlining panel on each side; within panels, allover pattern of fungus scrolls and bats. Bats symbolize happiness; ling chih fungus, longevity

Physical dimensions

17.8 × 12.7 × 8.9 cm (7 × 5 × 3 1/2 in.)

Credit line

Not recorded by the source.