Incense burner with rectangular handles and flower branches

The glossy quality of the crackled glaze over the hard buff body suggests this piece's northern celadon origin. Descended from similar wares produced during the Song, the tripod incense burner became prevalent in the north during the Jin-Yuan period. The shape was increasingly popular at two major yaozhou kilns in Shaanxi and Henan (Henan Inst. 1991: fig. 119). Most yaozhou incense burners are glazed in olive or yellowish green. This piece exemplifies a special type, with a glaze hue somewhere between black and celadon colors. This incense burner has bow-shaped ears over a rounded body resting on three hoof-shaped legs.