Mino kilns
Shino-Style Water Basin
1799-1832
Physical Qualities
Porcelain with underglaze grayish iron decoration, gold lacquer repair, 9 1/4 x 17 3/4 in. (23.5 x 45.1 cm.)
Credit Line
Julius Levy Memorial Fund
Object Number
2015.332
This vessel represents the revival of an earlier ceramic style characterized by a milky-white glaze and painterly decoration. The designs on the exterior of this water basin suggest a grassy bank while the interior depicts water plants. This basin was likely used for handwashing, a reflection of Japan’s established purification practices. Entering a Buddhist temple, Shinto shrine, or private tea house required symbolic cleansing by rinsing the mouth and pouring water over each hand.
The Baltimore Museum of Art by purchase, 2015; Bonham's, New York, 2015; Mark S. Pratt, Washington, D.C.
Frances Klapthor, The Baltimore Museum of Art, "Across East Asia: China's Cultural & Artistic Legacy," October 30, 2019-December 31, 2023.
Frances Klapthor, "The Way of Nature: Art from Japan, China, and Korea," Baltimore Museum of Art, September 21, 2025-March 1, 2026
Frances Klapthor, "The Way of Nature: Art from Japan, China, and Korea," Baltimore Museum of Art, September 21, 2025-March 1, 2026
"Japanese and Korean Art," Bonham's, New York, March 18, 2015, lot 3104.
On View at the BMA
