Brown-glazed ewer with gold peacock and peony patterns

This Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) brown-glazed ewer is a Jingdezhen product. It has an elegant and smooth shape, and is adorned in golden paint in intricate and splendid patterns, including the banana leaf and lotus flower. On each side of the belly, there is a peach-shaped reserve panel depicting a peacock perching on a flowering peony branch.

The knob of the ewer’s lid is designed in the shape of a squatting beast, with its head turned backward.

Excavated from Yaoxian county, Shaanxi province, in 1959, the ewer is an important artifact for studying the development of Chinese ceramics’ gold decoration techniques. It is a treasure from the permanent collection of the Shaanxi History Museum.