Day 116 - Thai inlaid box
January 4, 2019
Gallery 250 holds mostly small statues and ceramics from Southeast Asia (Thailand, Vietnam, and Burma) that date from the 11th to the 16th centuries. I realize that I made numerous trips to the Indian galleries before I traveled to India, but none to these galleries before my 2010 trip to Southeast Asia. In fact, I doubt I even realized that the galleries existed. Would knowing more about the art and culture of these countries beforehand have enhanced my visit, I wonder? On the other hand, I recall the pleasure I got from recognizing both Buddhist and Hindu images at Angkor Wat. So maybe it was good to know just enough to make such "discoveries" possible.
The captions make clear the influence of other cultures on Southeast Asian art. Thus, the Vietnamese ceramics on display mimic the blue-and-white decoration of Ming porcelains, and one stoneware ewer from Vietnam takes the form of a phoenix. I learn, too, that Buddhist iconography in Southeast Asia was influenced by that of Sri Lanka, since by the first centuries of the second millennium, the Muslims had largely wiped out Buddhism in India. But I learn that there was also an indigenous ceramic industry in Thailand dating back to the mid-14th century, and it produced some lovely things. I especially like a vessel that reminds me of a teapot with a spout shaped like an elephant's head and a handle in the form of a mahout.
I chose today's object because of its sheer beauty. A lacquered wood manuscript storage box with mother-of-pearl inlay measuring perhaps 30 inches long, 4 inches wide, and 5 inches high, it was made in Thailand in the mid-19th century. As such, it doesn't fit very well into this gallery timewise. But it would be a shame not to display this lovely piece, with its delicate design of iridescent - and glowing -pink, aqua, and green leaves against a black ground. I read that it was made expressly to house a Buddhist manuscript, and that such containers were commissioned by the Thai nobility as presentation gifts for royal chapels and monasteries where members of the court worshipped. The production of these objects was largely confined to court workshops inside the royal palace. We think of modern Thailand as harboring vast disparities between rich and poor, and I guess that goes way back. But isn't it true that in every country, luxury objects of this sort are produced for the pleasure and benefit of the wealthy, not for the pleasure or edification of the masses? At least in a museum, the masses are able to enjoy these beautiful things.
The captions make clear the influence of other cultures on Southeast Asian art. Thus, the Vietnamese ceramics on display mimic the blue-and-white decoration of Ming porcelains, and one stoneware ewer from Vietnam takes the form of a phoenix. I learn, too, that Buddhist iconography in Southeast Asia was influenced by that of Sri Lanka, since by the first centuries of the second millennium, the Muslims had largely wiped out Buddhism in India. But I learn that there was also an indigenous ceramic industry in Thailand dating back to the mid-14th century, and it produced some lovely things. I especially like a vessel that reminds me of a teapot with a spout shaped like an elephant's head and a handle in the form of a mahout.
I chose today's object because of its sheer beauty. A lacquered wood manuscript storage box with mother-of-pearl inlay measuring perhaps 30 inches long, 4 inches wide, and 5 inches high, it was made in Thailand in the mid-19th century. As such, it doesn't fit very well into this gallery timewise. But it would be a shame not to display this lovely piece, with its delicate design of iridescent - and glowing -pink, aqua, and green leaves against a black ground. I read that it was made expressly to house a Buddhist manuscript, and that such containers were commissioned by the Thai nobility as presentation gifts for royal chapels and monasteries where members of the court worshipped. The production of these objects was largely confined to court workshops inside the royal palace. We think of modern Thailand as harboring vast disparities between rich and poor, and I guess that goes way back. But isn't it true that in every country, luxury objects of this sort are produced for the pleasure and benefit of the wealthy, not for the pleasure or edification of the masses? At least in a museum, the masses are able to enjoy these beautiful things.
later
The box makes me think of beautifully embroidered Torah covers I have seen; certainly, the box and Torah covers serve similar functions of protecting sacred literature. The Torah covers were, in fact, for the pleasure of all members of and visitors to the congregation, who were often fairly varied -- though the Torah mantles were doubtless the gifts of wealthier members.
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