JIN DYNASTY, 12TH-13TH CENTURY

Dark-glazed jars of this type, decorated with vertical ribs of trailed white slip, were produced in various sizes and shapes at a number of Cizhou kiln sites in Shandong, Henan and Hebei provinces. What sets this handsome jar apart, however, is the unusual appearance of the single character, Zhang, molded on each of the handles. Excavations at Guantai, a major Cizhou kiln center in modern Cixian, Hebei province, have yielded a sherd, a handle similar those on the present jar, which also bears a molded Zhang character. See Guantai Cizhou yaozhi, Beijing, 1997, pl. LIV:1 (left). Also illustrated, pl. XXV:1, is a reconstructed jar from the site which has similar vertical ribs and is of similar proportions to the present jar. The character Zhang impressed on the handles of these jars is likely a reference to the celebrated Zhang Family of potters famed for producing pillows in the vicinity of Cizhou in Hebei province. The inclusion of this name on this jar suggests the family was involved in the production of other wares as well.