Tripod bowl with thumb-shaped handle

Patterned after Han period bronze cookware, ceramic tripods were favored for funerary use starting in Jiangsu and Zhejiang during the third century. Soon, typologically analogous celadon tripods spread widely throughout the south. The design on this piece illustrates the approach of Jiangxi potters, as verified by glazed tripods discovered from recently excavated fifth- to sixth-century tombs (KG 1984.1: 95; KGWW 1985.4: pls. 2-3). In comparison with yue ware, the peeling condition and the minor beige-toned crackles in the glaze on this tripod make celadons like this piece a recognizably different category from southern celadons.