fat, kärl, Wooden dish

This wooden dish has flared sides that turn outward at the rim and rests on a foot. The base within the footrim is flat with some irregularities. The outer edge of the rim of the dish was trimmed vertically. The interior base is slightly convex and incised rings – one ring where the base meets the sides, and a double-ring at the centre – add a decorative element to the otherwise plain dish. This dish was turned on a lathe from one piece of wood. The turning marks remain visible. The surface was treated with a surface coating, possibly lacquer. There is a small hole in the wood near the centre of the dish.

Wood-turning is a traditional craft in Korea and craftspeople have been known for being especially skilful at turning wood, producing a large variety of round-shaped objects for ritual or everyday use such as dishes, bowls, trays, and small round tables (Korean: soban). To produce wooden wares, the wood was first cut and roughly shaped (Korean: chogari). After drying, the piece of wood was then worked into its final shape (Korean: jaegari). Wooden wares were typically finished with a surface coating of lacquer. Simple decorations of incised lines, along with the visible turning or tool marks and the natural pattern of the wood grain, give these objects a special aesthetic appeal.

문화콘텐츠닷컴. 풍속화 콘텐츠. 목기깍기. [ONLINE] Available at: http://www.culturecontent.com/content/contentView.do?search_div_id=CP_THE006&cp_code=cp0235&index_id=cp02351062&content_id=cp023507950001&search_left_menu=3. [Accessed 30 July 2018].
성춘경. 한국민족문화대백과사전 . 2000. 목기장(木器匠). [ONLINE] Available at: http://encykorea.aks.ac.kr/Contents/SearchNavi?keyword=목기장&ridx=0&tot=1. [Accessed 30 July 2018].