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Incense Burner (lid)
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Incense Burner (lid)

late 1300s · bronze with metal rim

From the collection of Cleveland Museum of Art. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.

About this work

This container's repeated, undulating, rounded sides evoke waves over which the articulated plovers sweep. The bronze cover (probably a later addition) mimics the design of a fishing weir. Overall, the container brings to mind the seashore. The earthy quality of the lacquered surface demonstrates the interaction between a man-made pattern (the plovers) and the somewhat unexpected surface of a natural material such as wood.

Cleveland Museum of Art’s own description
Credit lineIncense Burner (lid), late 1300s. Japan, Nanbokuchō period (1336–92). Bronze with metal rim; overall: 7.7 x 10.8 cm (3 1/16 x 4 1/4 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund, 1960.195.b
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