Spouted ewer
Also called 执壶Also called 茗瓶Also called 偏提Also called 차주전자
A spouted ewer for holding and pouring liquids. Korean celadon examples include plant-shaped vessels, sometimes paired with a basin that helped keep their contents warm. Some ewers belong to tea preparation, but their shape alone does not establish whether an individual vessel held tea, water or wine. National Museum of Korea
On this page
- 1Knob
- 2Lid
- 3Spout
- 4Handle
- 5Body
- 6Base
Form#
- Body
- ovoid, melon-lobed (瓜棱腹), or double-gourd belly rising to a trumpet or cylindrical neck (喇叭口或直颈), often seated inside a matching deep lotus-petalled warming bowl (注碗 / 승반)1234
- Spout
- short octagonal faceted spout (八角短流) on Tang ewers, evolving in the Five Dynasties, Song, and Goryeo periods into a tall, slender, gracefully curving S-shaped spout (修长曲流) rising level with the mouth
- Handle
- high strap handle (曲柄 / 执把) arching from the neck to the mid-belly opposite the spout, often topped with a small tie-ring lug (系耳) for a cord securing the lid
- Lid
- stepped plug lid (塞盖), lotus-leaf cap, or sculpted lion/phoenix/lotus-bud finial lid with a matching cord-loop (系纽)
- Knob
- lotus bud, curled stem, or mythical animal finial (莲蕾钮 / 狮钮)
- Base
- flared pedestal foot (外撇圈足) or flat recessed base
Compare an object photograph · 국립중앙박물관 · 참외 모양 주자 · 29664
Working volume#
The useful volume depends on the vessel’s role in the set. A cooling or serving vessel should receive the intended transfer without filling to the rim; a fresh-water or waste-water vessel serves a different purpose. Exterior dimensions alone do not establish any of these working volumes.
Variants and sub-types#
| Name | 한국어 | Difference | Sources |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chamoe-hyeong (melon-lobed celadon ewer) | 참외형 주자（瓜形注子） | Canonical 12th-century Goryeo celadon ewer with an 8- or 10-lobed melon body, foliate or lotus-leaf lid, reed-loop finial linked by a cord to the strap handle loop, and curved spout | 123 |
| Pyo-hyeong (double-gourd ewer) | 표형 주자（瓢形注子） | Gourd-shaped Goryeo celadon ewer with a small upper bulb and full lower belly, often inlaid (상감) with cloud-and-crane, willow, or peony scroll in white and black slip and paired with a matching basin (승반) | 123 |
| Jukjeol-hyeong & Yeonhwa-hyeong (bamboo-node & lotus ewer) | 죽절형（竹節形）・연화형（蓮花形）주자 | Sculptural Goryeo celadon ewers formed as bundled bamboo stalks with nodal ridges (죽절형) or relief-carved lotus petals (연화형), sometimes surmounted by a sculpted mandarin duck, lion, or 童子 boy finial | 123 |
| Joseon Buncheong & Baekja Juja (15th–18th c.) | 분청사기・백자 주자（朝鮮時代） | Early Joseon buncheong and white porcelain ewers with broader, sturdier pear-shaped or globular bodies, stamped (인화) or brushed (귀얄) slip decoration, and thicker tubular spouts and strap handles | 12 |
History#
- mid-to-late Tang (early 9th century, 注子 & 偏提)Li Kuangyi's (李匡乂) Tang miscellany 资暇集 records that during the Yuanhe era (806–820) drinkers added a pouring spout and handle to the tall flask to create the 注子; under Emperor Wuzong (Huichang era, 841–846) it was briefly renamed 偏提. Tang Yue celadon, Xing white ware, and Changsha kilns (including a Changsha ewer inscribed '茶酒' in the 1986 Guangdong–Hong Kong exhibition, Plate 18, H 17.5 cm) produced short-spouted ewers across China.1
- Northern & Southern Song (汤瓶 / 点茶执壶)In Song whisked tea (点茶), the tall long-spouted ewer (注子 / 汤瓶, praised by Cai Xiang and Emperor Huizong for a spout that pours a strong, clean stream and stops instantly without dripping 注汤利落、收水不滴) was used to pour boiling water in seven controlled additions over tea powder in a 建盏.2
- Goryeo to Joseon Korea (Juja 주자)Goryeo royal kilns at Gangjin and Buan elevated the celadon ewer-and-basin set (cheongja juja seungban 청자주자승반) into masterpieces of 12th-century East Asian ceramic art—shaping juja as ribbed melons, bamboo shoots, pomegranates, and dragons—and Joseon kilns continued producing white porcelain (baekja) juja alongside smaller dagwan (다관).3
The National Museum of Korea’s gourd-shaped ewer and basin (duk 6236, 13th century) illustrates the distinction between form and function. Its curator describes alcohol and water among the liquids poured from the ewer and explains the basin’s warming role. Use this documented example alongside tea-specific vessels, rather than assigning tea use to all ewers. National Museum of Korea · duk 6236
Sources#
Status and editorial notes sources cited
Sources are listed below. Their presence does not certify every claim; source-specific interpretations and unresolved questions are identified in the text. This page has not received independent expert approval.