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Cosmetic Box

13th century
Artist/maker unknown, Korean
The technique used to decorate this box is an indigenous inlay technique (called sanggam in Korean) invented by Korean potters in the first decade of the twelfth century. Designs are incised into the clay and then filled with white or red clay before firing. When fired, the white and red clay produce the effect of white and black colors, respectively. This technique may have been borrowed from earlier methods that inlaid lacquerware with mother-of-pearl and metalware with gold and silver.

Object Details

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