Box with Design of Auspicious Symbols

early 20th century

Korean

Not On View

Box with Design of Auspicious Symbols: 1 of Collection Gallery

Box with Design of Auspicious Symbols: 2 of Collection Gallery

Box with Design of Auspicious Symbols: 3 of Collection Gallery

Box with Design of Auspicious Symbols: 4 of Collection Gallery

Box with Design of Auspicious Symbols: 5 of Collection Gallery

Box with Design of Auspicious Symbols: 6 of Collection Gallery

Box with Design of Auspicious Symbols: 7 of Collection Gallery

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About the Artwork

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Markings

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Provenance

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Exhibition History

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Published References

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Catalogue Raisonné

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Credit Line for Reproduction

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About the Artwork

Ox horn decoration, known as hwagak, was unique to Korea and mainly used for sewing boxes, small chests, and clothes boxes of high-born women. Each panel is a self-contained scene of propitious images: the paired dragon and phoenix are emblems of masculinity and femininity; the deer, crane and tortoise symbolize long life; and birds, flowers, and butterflies signify marital bliss. The laborious and time-consuming hwagak technique requires a horn to be soaked or steamed with water, flattened, separated into thin layers, cut into uniform rectangles, painted on the reverse side, and glued to a wooden frame with the painted side facing inward. Finally, the outer surface was polished to a brilliant luster. The finished work shows us an exuberant view of the Chosŏn woman’s world.

Title Box with Design of Auspicious Symbols

Artwork Date early 20th century

Artist ----------

Life Dates ----------

Nationality Please note: Definitions for nationality may vary significantly, depending on chronology and world events. Some definitions include: Belonging to a people having a common origin based on a geography and/or descent and/or tradition and/or culture and/or religion and/or language, or sharing membership in a legally defined nation. Korean

Culture Please note: Cultures may be defined by the language, customs, religious beliefs, social norms, and material traits of a group. Korean

Medium Ink and paint on ox horn panels on wood, ray skin, and metal

Dimensions Overall: 10 1/4 × 20 3/4 × 12 1/4 inches (26 × 52.7 × 31.1 cm)

Classification Furniture Accessories

Department Asian Art

Credit Founders Society Purchase, New Endowment Fund and funds from the Korean Community

Accession Number This unique number is assigned to an individual artwork as part of the cataloguing process at the time of entry into the permanent collection. Most frequently, accession numbers begin with the year in which the artwork entered the museum’s holdings. For example, 2008.3 refers to the year of acquisition and notes that it was the 3rd of that year. The DIA has a few additional systems—no longer assigned—that identify specific donors or museum patronage groups. 1986.3

Markings

Inscriptions ------

Provenance

(Klaus F. Naumann)

1986-present, purchase by the Detroit Institute of Arts (Detroit, Michigan, USA)

For more information on provenance and its important function in the museum, please visit:

Provenance page

Exhibition History

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The exhibition history of a number of objects in our collection only begins after their acquisition by the museum, and may reflect an incomplete record.

We welcome your feedback for correction and/or improvement.

Suggest Feedback

Published References

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We regularly update our object record as new research and findings emerge, and we welcome your feedback for correction and/or improvement.

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Catalogue Raisoneé

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Credit Line for Reproduction

Korean, Box with Design of Auspicious Symbols, early 20th century, ink and paint on ox horn panels on wood, ray skin, and metal. Detroit Institute of Arts, Founders Society Purchase, New Endowment Fund and funds from the Korean Community, 1986.3.