Oxblood Red Glazed Chinese Melon Jar

The melon shape is respected by the Chinese not only as a form but as a symbol for proliferation. These contemporary ceramics call back to the Song Dynasty (960 to 1279) when artisans focused their efforts on the art of monochrome glazes. The vase's deep, rich red glaze is often called "sang-de-boeuf" or "oxblood" in the West. The art of creating this particular glaze, which was notoriously difficult to achieve, was lost for centuries but revived in the 18th century, when the imperial court commissioned potters to recover the technique.