Lacquer, celadon, or bronze ensembles composed of four trefoil boxes surrounding a larger round or flower-shaped box served as containers for cosmetics or incense. Very few Goreyo-period lacquer boxes with mother-of-pearl inlay have survived; this is a particularly fine example.
This image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.
Open Access
As part of the Met's Open Access policy, you can freely copy, modify and distribute this image, even for commercial purposes.
API
Public domain data for this object can also be accessed using the Met's Open Access API.
This artwork is meant to be viewed from right to left. Scroll left to view more.
Artwork Details
Use your arrow keys to navigate the tabs below, and your tab key to choose an item
나전 대모 칠 국화 넝쿨 무늬 꽃 모양 합 고려 螺鈿玳瑁漆菊唐草文半花形盒 高麗
Title:Trefoil-shaped covered box with decoration of chrysanthemums
Period:Goryeo dynasty (918–1392)
Date:ca.12th century
Culture:Korea
Medium:Lacquer inlaid with mother-of-pearl and tortoise shell over pigment and brass wire
Dimensions:H. 1 5/8 in. (4.1 cm); L. 4 in. (10.2 cm); D. 1 3/4 in. (4.4 cm)
Classification:Lacquer
Credit Line:Fletcher Fund, 1925
Object Number:25.215.41a, b
[ G. Kitanaka , Kyoto, until 1925; sold to MMA]
Seoul. Hoam Museum of Art. "Great Koryo Exhibition: The Triumph of the Artistic," July 14, 1995–September 10, 1995.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "The Arts of Korea," June 7, 1998–January 24, 1999.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Arts of Korea," August 23, 2003–June 28, 2004.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Arts of Korea," January 14, 2005–October 29, 2006.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Mother-of-Pearl: A Tradition in Asian Lacquer," December 2, 2006–April 1, 2007.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Art of Korea," July 7–November 15, 2009.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Contemplations on the Moon Jar," November 16, 2009–April 25, 2010.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Arts of Korea," May 19–November 7, 2010.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Representation/Abstraction in Korean Art," November 23, 2010–March 20, 2011.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Patchwork Textiles Across Cultures," August 24–December 5, 2011.
Seoul. National Museum of Korea. "Korean Art Collections in the United States," June 4, 2012–August 5, 2012.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Korea: 100 Years of Collecting at the Met," February 7, 2015–March 27, 2016.
Seoul. Leeum Museum of Art. "Exquisite and Precious: The Splendor of Korean Art," July 2, 2015–September 13, 2015.
Asian Art Museum of San Francisco. "Luminous," April 29, 2016–October 23, 2016.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Essential Korea," June 7, 2018–November 14, 2021.
National Museum of Korea. "Goryeo: The Glory of Korea," December 4, 2018–March 3, 2019.
New York. The Metropolitan Museum of Art. "Shell and Resin: Korean Mother-of-Pearl and Lacquer," December 13, 2021–July 5, 2022.
Watt, James C. Y., and Barbara Brennan Ford. East Asian Lacquer: The Florence and Herbert Irving Collection. Exh. cat. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1991, p. 306, fig. 32.
Leidy, Denise Patry. Mother-of Pearl: A Tradition in Asian Lacquer. Exh. cat. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2006, p. 52, cat. no. 2.
The Metropolitan Museum of Art. The Metropolitan Museum of Art Guide. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2012, p. 109.
Leeum Museum of Art. Semil kagwi: Han'guk misul ŭi p'umkyŏk 세밀가귀 細密可貴 : 한국미술의품격 (Exquisite and precious: the splendor of Korean art). Exh. cat. Seoul: Samsŏng Misulgwan, Leeum, 2015, pp. 80–81, 367–368, cat. no. 29.
Kungnip Chungang Pangmulgwan. Tae Koryŏ 918-2018: Kŭ Ch'allanhan Tojŏn: T'ŭkpyŏljŏn 대고려 918-2018 : 그 찬란한 도전 : 특별전 (Goryeo: the glory of Korea: special exhibition). Exh. cat. Seoul: Kungnip Chungang Pangmulgwan, 2018, pp. 69, 317, cat. no. 66.
The Met's Libraries and Research Centers provide unparalleled resources for research and welcome an international community of students and scholars.
The Met Collection API is where all makers, creators, researchers, and dreamers can connect to the most up-to-date data and public domain images for The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.
Feedback
We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.
The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world.
