Pedestalled Jar

Lavishly equipped with large quantities of ceramics, the aristocratic and royal tombs of the Korean Silla (313–668) held foodstuffs and liquids as part of ancestral rites linked to native shamanist beliefs. This large jar has thin walled construction, a high perforated attached pedestal, and decoration of finely combed and impressed circular and linear abstract patterns—features typical of wares used to contain funerary offerings. The natural ash glaze, blown unevenly across the neck, shoulder, and body of the vessel by drafts of heat during firing in the kiln is also characteristic of this kind of ware, although this jar provides an especially rich example of this form of accidental. Also, this stoneware storage jar derives its shape from older bronze cauldrons used by the nomads of Siberia—who are ethnically related to the people of the Three Kingdoms in Korea. Many of their vessels were similarly elevated on pierced foot rings.