Ryokuyu ware: outer receptacle for sutra (Buddhist scripture) case.
Excavated from Rokujutani, Wakayama City, Wakayama Prefecture
11th century
Height: 25.9cm, Bore: 17.4cm, Bottom: 15.5cm
Important Cultural Property
Agency for Cultural Affairs
　Sutra mounds were not constructed until the 11th century, but ceramic sutra casing outer vessels did not become common until the 12th century, and there are relatively few dating back to the 11th century. Green glaze on sutra-tube outer vessels is extremely rare, and only two examples are still known today. This vessel has a thick cylindrical body with a dish-shaped lid, and the body is covered with three thick, solid buttresses in the upper, middle, and lower sections. The body has three thick, solid stripes around the upper, middle, and lower sections. By the end of the 11th century, these stripes had changed to a three-stripe pattern with double lines. Therefore, this vessel belongs to the archaic type of sutra case outer vessels. It has a thick coat of dark green glaze on a slightly iron-rich base. The glaze is poorly polished and unevenness is noticeable in places. Based on the base and glaze tone, it is thought to have been produced in the Kinai region.
