Serving Dish (Hirabachi) with Circular Patterns (Botan-mochi)

The deliberate distortion of this large, circular platter and the presence of grotesquely beautiful firing marks suggest the guiding spirit of a tea master. When thrown on the potter’s wheel, the platter was probably intentionally deformed into a three-lobed vessel. Its only decorative features—four large, scorched-looking circles—are actually vestiges of smaller objects that were placed on top of it to utilize kiln space economically during the firing process. Small balls of clay inserted to separate these objects from the platter have also left their marks. The wood ash that fell onto the platter during the firing left rich mustard-brown speckles on the surface (except in the areas covered by the four small objects). Although initially such marks were no doubt accidental, they were eventually cultivated as decorative features.

This platter was most likely intended for use in serving kaiseki, the simple meal that precedes chanoyu. The unglazed underside displays the deep chocolate brown of Bizen clay. Four low feet cut away from the body of the platter reveal the artisan’s modeling skills.

[Miyeko Murase 2000, Bridge of Dreams]

Mary and Jackson Burke Foundation , New York (until 2015; donated to MMA)

New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Masterpieces of Japanese Art from The Mary Griggs Burke Collection," March 30–June 25, 2000.

New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Turning Point: Oribe and the Arts of Sixteenth-Century Japan," October 21, 2003–January 11, 2004.

New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Celebrating the Arts of Japan: The Mary Griggs Burke Collection," October 20, 2015–May 14, 2017.

Tsuji Nobuo 辻惟雄, Mary Griggs Burke, Nihon Keizai Shinbunsha 日本経済新聞社, and Gifu-ken Bijutsukan 岐阜県美術館. Nyūyōku Bāku korekushon-ten: Nihon no bi sanzennen no kagayaki ニューヨーク・バーク・コレクション展 : 日本の美三千年の輝き(Enduring legacy of Japanese art: The Mary Griggs Burke collection). Exh. cat. [Tokyo]: Nihon Keizai Shinbunsha, 2005, p. 115, cat. no. 53.

Murase, Miyeko, Il Kim, Shi-yee Liu, Gratia W. Nakahashi, Stephanie Wada, Soyoung Lee, and David Ake Sensabaugh. Art Through a Lifetime: The Mary Griggs Burke Collection. Vol. 2, Japanese Objects, Korean Art, Chinese Art. [New York]: Mary and Jackson Burke Foundation, [2013], p. 33, cat. no. 593.