Bowl with Lotus Petal Decoration

The development of stoneware vessels with grayish-green glazed surfaces of the Goryeo dynasty (918–1392) began with monochrome wares in the second half of the 10th century. In addition to plain pieces covered solely by a smooth glaze (see Smart Museum object number 1986.154), many wares have cut, incised, impressed, or molded decorations, sometimes in combination. In this vessel, a single row of overlapping layers of open lotus petals has been cut and incised around the outer body of a wide-mouthed bowl. In literature and the visual arts, the open lotus flower and lotus bud—symbols of purity and spiritual transcendence in Buddhist lore—evoke the verdant paradisiacal paradise realms of the faith’s many Buddhas, particularly the Pure Land of the Amitabha Buddha. Favored by Buddhist abbots of the Goryeo period, this floral motif eventually entered into the decorative vocabulary of mainstream secular celadon production in vessels destined for use by the king and royal family, court officials, and aristocratic families. Bowls of this type were popular throughout the Goryeo dynasty, but this resembles celadon vessels recovered recently from a trade shipwreck off the southwest coast of Korea, dating to 1207–08.