This vessel with a lion-shaped cover was presumably used to burn incense on a Buddhist altar. In Buddhism, the lion is an animal that protects the Dharma and as such often appears on pagodas, stone lanterns, and Buddhist ritual implements. This particular vessel is noted for being very much like the one described in Illustrated Records of the Chinese Embassy to the Goryeo Court during the Xuanhe Era, written by Xu Jing, a Song Dynasty envoy who stayed in Goryeo for a month in 1123 and introduced the Goryeo's society and culture to the Song. The description runs as follows: " The lion-shaped incense burner has a beautiful jade-green color (bisaek). The figure of an animal is crouching down on the lid, supported by a lotus flower. This is the most exquisite of many varied vessels…." Though not exactly like the one seen by Xu Jing, this incense burner is valuable as an example of the varied celadon vessels of the first half of the 12th century. It is designated as Korean National TreasureNo. 60.

History of the Object

Incense burners were generally made of metal, but with advances in ceramic production technology some celadon versions were also made. Thanks to the ability of clay to be formed into any shape, celadon incense burners featured varied sculpture ornaments and designs. Those with lids were usually topped with animal figures, real life ones such as lions and ducks, or imaginary beasts such as kylins and dragons.