Spoon with Dual Heads (Cleveland Museum of Art 1917.333)
Record status
Individual type · partial
Period
918–1392
This bronze spoon has dual heads: one is large, and the other small. The smaller head is believed to have been used to hold a small dose of liquid medicine. Cleveland Museum of Art object 1917.333: Spoon with Dual Heads (약시형 청동 수저 [藥匙形靑銅匙]), 918–1392.
Korea, Goryeo dynasty (918–1392). Bronze; overall: 20.4 cm (8 1/16 in.). Details are those of this museum object; how far it represents a wider type has not been independently verified.
Evidence at a glance
- Linked sources
- 1
- Photograph views
- 1
- Catalogue references
- 0
Counts describe this entry’s documentation, not authenticity, rarity or completeness. Photographs may show one specimen; check each caption and licence.
Historical context
Bronze spoons are the most common burial item. Scholars have proposed that toward the end of the 14th century, Koreans enjoyed meat-based soups more than any other dishes, explaining why spoons became common household items as well as burial goods.
Physical characteristics
- Materials
- bronze
- Dimensions
- Overall: 20.4 cm (8 1/16 in.)
- Measurements
- Overall: 20.4 cm (8 1/16 in.)
- Material and technique
- bronze
Identification
- Date recorded
- 918–1392
- Culture period
- Korea, Goryeo dynasty (918–1392)
- Holding institution
- Cleveland Museum of Art
- Museum object number
- 1917.333
- Published references
- L. W. "Korean Bronze Spoons of the Korai Dynasty." The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art 4, no. 6 (1917): 99-101. Reproduced: Front Matter; Mentioned: pp. 99-101 Goryeo Dynasty: Korea's Age of Enlightenment, 918-1392 . San Francisco: Asian Art Museum, 2003. Yoon, Sung-Jae. "The Aspects and Meaning of Spoon and Chopsticks in the Goryeo Dynasty [고려시대 분묘출토 청동수저]." Yeoksa silhakhoe 56 (2015): 51-68. Bronze in Life and Art [삶과 예술 속. 청동 靑銅 이야기] National Cheongju Museum (2016). Jeong, Eui-do. Changes of Spoons during the Late Goryeo Period [고려후기 숟가락의 변화].” Hanguk jungse gogohak (2017): 139-157. Goryeo: The Glory of Korea [대고려, 그 찬란한 도전]. Seoul: National Museum of Korea, 2018.
- Museum classification
- Metalwork
Catalogue references
No catalogue numbers recorded. Numbers are only published once transcribed from a verified edition of a standard catalogue — they are never inferred.
Research required
- Research required: this record describes a single museum object; confirm maker, marks and date against silver and metalwork references.