Goryeo Celadon and Colors of Japan 高麗青磁は青？緑？

Japanese follows English.　英語の後に日本語が続きます。

The Toyokan Asian gallery of Tokyo National Museum is finally open. It's been five months since I last saw Korean celadon. The celadon green is so beautiful.

Ewer with lotus-shaped lid 青磁蓮華蓋水注

Lobed vase 青磁瓜型瓶

Bowl with stylized flowers and vines
青磁印花宝相華唐草文鉢

Lobed ewer with flowering plants
青磁鉄絵花卉文瓜形水注

Bowl with parrots 青磁鸚鵡文鉢

Bowl with lotus petals 青磁蓮弁文蓋付椀

They are all Goryeo (918-1392) ware, whose production increased in the mid-10th century and culminated in the 12th century. Their pale green, which resembles jade green, and their carved, embossed and inlaid decoration are so elegantly beautiful.

Celadon is called "blue pottery" in Japan, and you should find it strange because celadon is not "blue" but pale "green," but there's a reason for that. In Japan, people use "blue" for "green." For example, they say "blue" traffic lights, "blue" apples, and "blue" leafy vegetables, instead of "green" lights, "green" apples, and "green" leafy vegetables.

According to a television program of NHK (Japan's public broadcaster), Japan used to have only four colors, white, black, red and blue, and the then "blue" included green. In "The Man'yōshū," the oldest existing collection of waka or Japanese poetry, compiled sometime after AD 759 during the Nara period, green leaves were described as "blue" leaves. The color green was differentiated from the blue in the 10th century, but the legacy still lives on....

So, if you have a chance to come to Japan, don't be surprised that green lights, green apples, green leafy vegetable, and even green caterpillars are all called "BLUE (あお)"!!

If you like celadon, read "Celadon in 16 Forms," too!!

(If you wish to post your comment but don't have a Google account, select "anonymous" from the drop down menu titled "comment as"!)

東京国立博物館東洋館の高麗青磁です。１０世紀半ばに中国から技術が導入され、１２世紀に最盛期を迎えました。

日本語では「青磁」ですが、実際は薄緑のものが多く、写真の高麗青磁も「翡色」と表現されています。というわけでいつも思います。青磁じゃなくて「緑磁」でしょって｡｡｡

他にもあります。「青信号」も「青りんご」も「青菜」もみんな実際は「緑」。はい、ググりました！ するとチコちゃんが知ってました。

もともと日本には「白、黒、赤、青」の４つしかなく、緑は青に含まれていたとのこと。（万葉集では緑の木々を「あを（青）」と呼んでいたそうです。）

１０世紀になると「緑」が出てきて、平安時代末期から鎌倉時代には青と緑がはっきり区別されたらしいのですが、その後も日本人は緑のものを青と呼ぶそうです。（出典：NHK第１１回「チコちゃんに叱られる」）

謎が解けました！（ガッテン！！）

青磁がお好きな方は是非、「Celadon in 16 Forms いろんな青磁」もご覧ください！

(Google アカウントを持ってない方は、コメント記入後に「Google アカウント」をクリックし、「匿名」か「名前/URL」を選択してからご記入ください！)