Japanese / Three Mandarin Ducks / Edo period, late 17th-early 18th centuryJapanese
Three Mandarin Ducks
Edo period, late 17th-early 18th century

View Larger Image

View Full Catalog Record Below



This image is one of over 108,000 from the AMICA Library (formerly The Art Museum Image Consortium Library- The AMICO Library™), a growing online collection of high-quality, digital art images from over 20 museums around the world. www.davidrumsey.com/amica offers subscriptions to this collection, the finest art image database available on the internet. EVERY image has full curatorial text and can be studied in depth by zooming into the smallest details from within the Image Workspace.
 
Preview the AMICA Library™ Public Collection in Luna Browser Now

  • Cultures and time periods represented range from contemporary art, to ancient Greek, Roman, and Egyptian works.
  • Types of works include paintings, drawings, watercolors, sculptures, costumes, jewelry, furniture, prints, photographs, textiles, decorative art, books and manuscripts.

Gain access to this incredible resource through either a monthly or a yearly subscription and search the entire collection from your desktop, compare multiple images side by side and zoom into the minute details of the images. Visit www.davidrumsey.com/amica for more information on the collection, click on the link below the revolving thumbnail to the right, or email us at amica@luna-img.com .



Creator Nationality: Asian; Far East Asian; Japanese
Creator Name-CRT: Japanese
Title: Three Mandarin Ducks
View: Full View
Creation Start Date: 1667
Creation End Date: 1733
Creation Date: Edo period, late 17th-early 18th century
Creation Place: Japan, Saga Prefecture
Object Type: Sculpture
Materials and Techniques: Porcelain painted with overglaze enamels, the hen with glaze and brown enamel on biscuit (Arita ware, Kakiemon style)
Dimensions: Drake, 4 1/2 x 7 5/8 x 4 1/2 in. (11.4 x 19.4 x 11.4 cm); hen, 4 1/4 x 7 1/4 x 4 1/4 in. (10.8 x 18.4 x 10.8 cm); duckling, 2 3/4 x 4 3/4 x 2 3/4 in. (7 x 12.1 x 7 cm)
AMICA Contributor: Asia Society
Owner Location: New York, New York, USA
ID Number: 1979.242.1-3
Credit Line: Asia Society: The Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection
Rights: http://www.asiasociety.org
Context: The rapid development and diversification of the Japanese porcelain industry in the 17th century is one of the most fascinating episodes in the history of ceramics. During this period, the city of Arita, located in the Saga Prefecture in Hizen Province on the southern island of Kyushu, became the largest and most important center for the production of porcelain in the world. Several factors contributed to this development. One was the contribution of the many technically advanced potters brought to Japanfrom Korea during the late 16th-century Japanese invasions of that country. Another was the prohibitive effects of the civil disarray in 17th-century China on its ceramic industry, which led Europeans and other customers in search of highly prized porcelains to turn to Japan.

The first Japanese porcelains were painted with underglaze cobalt blue, known as "old blue-and-white" ware (ko-sumetsuke). But by about 1640, overglaze enamels had been added to the palette. It is generally accepted that overglaze enamels were introduced to Kyushu from Kyoto rather than from China. One reason for this assumption is the use of a vibrant overglaze blue--seen here on these mandarin ducks--in both Kyoto ware and Japanese porcelains, a color not found in Chinese ceramics of that period.

The majority of Japanese porcelains are classified as Arita wares, based on the location of their production. Arita wares are traditionally subdivided into Imari, Kakiemon, and Nabeshima styles (although this system is currently under revision). This family of mandarin ducks, painted in the Kakiemon-style palette of pale overglazeenamels, represents a popular type of ceramic figurine produced in the 17th and 18th centuries. The drake and duckling are painted in shades of red, green, blue, and yellow, while the hen is a dark brown. Although these three sculptures have no function,it has been suggested that the appearance at Arita of porcelain ducks might be linked to the Kyoto tradition of making incense boxes in the shapes of ducks and other birds. Another possible source is the mandarin ducks that were often used as a symbol ofmarital happiness--a theme with Chinese prototypes--in Japanese art. Porcelain figurines of beautiful women, lion-dogs, and ducks were exported to Europe as exotic examples of the art of Japan, and it is unlikely that their imagery was well understood there.


Related Document Description: Asia Society. Handbook of the Mr. and Mrs. John D. Rockefeller 3rd Collection. New York: Asia Society, [1981], p. 106.
AMICA ID: ASIA.1979.242.1-3
AMICA Library Year: 1999
Media Metadata Rights: Copyright Asia Society

AMICA PUBLIC RIGHTS: a) Access to the materials is granted for personal and non-commercial use. b) A full educational license for non-commercial use is available from Cartography Associates at www.davidrumsey.com/amica/institution_subscribe.html c) Licensed users may continue their examination of additional materials provided by Cartography Associates, and d) commercial rights are available from the rights holder.

Home | Subscribe | Preview | Benefits | About | Help | Contact
Copyright © 2007 Cartography Associates.
All rights reserved.