Glazed Magpie Pickling Jar

Unlike ceramics decorated with underglazing, this monumental vessel was painted after it was fired. This technique enabled the artist to build up areas and experiment with texture, visible in the stamped pattern along the painted bands and in the embossing of the flowers along the neck. The large jar is decorated with a pheasant, a regal phoenix, and two chattering magpies. Two sinuous dragons wind across the shoulders, mythical beasts of power and strength. Originally used to pickle eggs or vegetables, this container works well today planted with green foliage indoors or out.