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Lot Essay
The present pillow demonstrates a sophisticated combination of decorative techniques. It was made using the jiaotai (marbled-clay) method first developed in the Tang dynasty, in which white and brown clays were twisted and kneaded together before shaping, producing naturalistic patterns reminiscent of wood grain and cloud scrolls. The sides are further embellished with tool-impressed motifs—dots, rings, and radiating strokes—arranged to form stylized chrysanthemum blossoms.
The base is incised with a maker’s mark reading Peijia huazhen (裴家花枕), which may be translated as 'flower pillow made by the Pei family.' Peijia appears to have been the name of a specialized workshop active at the Gongxian kilns (modern Gongyi, Henan). Together with related marks such as Dujia huazhen (杜家花枕) found from the same kiln complex, the maker’s mark provides important evidence for commercialized, workshop-based production of ceramics in the late Tang period. Although the kilns also manufactured other types of pillow—such as sancai and green-glazed examples—only a handful of marbled “flower pillows” survived, owing to the technical complexity of their manufacture. A closely related Tang pillow incised on the base with mark Peijia huazhen excavated in the Xinglong village, Nanzhao County, is currently in the Henan Musuem (https://www.chnmus.net/ch/collection/appraise/details.html?id=512159004041074124). Also, see, a related marbled pillow in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, illustrated by M. Medley in The Chinese Potter, A Practical History of Chinese Ceramics, New York, 1976, fig. 60 (where it does not cite if the pillow has a maker's mark on the base).
The base is incised with a maker’s mark reading Peijia huazhen (裴家花枕), which may be translated as 'flower pillow made by the Pei family.' Peijia appears to have been the name of a specialized workshop active at the Gongxian kilns (modern Gongyi, Henan). Together with related marks such as Dujia huazhen (杜家花枕) found from the same kiln complex, the maker’s mark provides important evidence for commercialized, workshop-based production of ceramics in the late Tang period. Although the kilns also manufactured other types of pillow—such as sancai and green-glazed examples—only a handful of marbled “flower pillows” survived, owing to the technical complexity of their manufacture. A closely related Tang pillow incised on the base with mark Peijia huazhen excavated in the Xinglong village, Nanzhao County, is currently in the Henan Musuem (https://www.chnmus.net/ch/collection/appraise/details.html?id=512159004041074124). Also, see, a related marbled pillow in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, illustrated by M. Medley in The Chinese Potter, A Practical History of Chinese Ceramics, New York, 1976, fig. 60 (where it does not cite if the pillow has a maker's mark on the base).