This octagonal vase is one of only a handful of such vessels that combine a lustrous gray-green celadon glaze with unglazed red-brown panels. The process used to produce these wares is very exacting and difficult, which may explain why it was only used on a limited number of works. To achieve the bold contrast of colors and textures, Chinese potters developed a new technique: after the entire vase was formed, eight of the twenty-four molded decorative panels on its surface were covered with wax, and a celadon glaze was applied to the whole piece. When the vase was fired in the kiln, the glaze turned the green color known as celadon, while the wax melted from the panels, leaving them to turn the soft reddish brown hue of the clay itself. The figures on the panels represent the Eight Immortals of Chinese Taoist philosophy. Felice Fischer, from Philadelphia Museum of Art: Handbook of the Collections (1995), p. 29.