Storage Jar, 1400s. Japan, Muromachi period (1392-1573). Stoneware with natural ash glaze (Tamba ware); diameter: 37 cm (14 9/16 in.); overall: 46.5 cm (18 5/16 in.). For centuries the Tokai region surrounding present-day Nagoya has been an especially fertile ceramic production center. One site was a group of kilns located west of Kyoto, in Tamba province. Nestled in a farming valley in the mountains behind the modern port of Kobe, Tamba required a regular supply of storage vessels and sturdy containers for distributing grain. This jar was formed in three sections, each fluted to the next and turned on a potter's wheel to scrape off excess material. Both interior and exterior walls were smoothed with a wooden or bamboo tool, leaving markings on the lower body and shoulder. The neck opening is small and wheel-turned, as is the neck, which bears fine lines and a matte-glazed surface. The lustrous green glaze that highlights the jar once trailed from the vessel's lip and clung to the ent