Iron kettle with crane design, Muromachi period

Overview

This Japanese iron kettle bears faint crane designs across a rough body with a broken, irregular skirt. Cleveland dates it to the Muromachi period, 1392–1573. Its account connects water-boiling kettles with tea preparation and attributes appreciation of this vessel’s worn asymmetry to tea masters.

The provenance lists Minoru Hosomi, Osaka, before Cleveland ownership from 1980. The maker and original users are unrecorded.

History & identity

Maker unrecorded.

Sources & representation

Complete institutional record and native photograph.

Selected bibliography

Documented works and useful reading. This is not a list of every appearance.

1. 01

   Cleveland Museum of Art online catalogue: Kettle with Crane Design (1980.11.a)

   Cleveland Museum of Art

   Undated online record; manufacture date and catalogue update timestamps are separate.

Language & cultural connections

Source-supported language and cultural connections have not yet been compiled for this profile.

References

Sources supporting this profile. Linked pages have their own scope and editorial standards.

1. Primary institutional object recordKettle with Crane Design — Cleveland Museum of Art 1980.11.aResearch access: 2026-10-21

Image credits

AI-generated object interpretation.