Abstract

By illuminating the spirit of the scholar[Seonbi] who ordered the moon jar, this paper explores how the scholar’s influence on Neo-Confucianism created a special white porcelain called “the moon jar” among Joseon white porcelains. If the moon jar appeared in the 17th to 18th centuries, it is necessary to examine the spirit of the preceding times. Neo-Confucianism had acquired an exclusive position in the ideological world at that time, overwhelming other ideologies politically and socially, especially after the Gimyosahwa (己卯士禍: A scholar’s disaster in the year of 己卯). Scholars were turning to the pursuit of the ideal of “rural autonomy” by using rural areas rather than cities as their bases. Considering the synchronicity of the mass-produced “Portrait and Moon Jar,” the human body’s formative beauty shown in white porcelain is based on the statue of a gentleman as a vessel of virtue—SumyeonAngbae (睟面盎背: A glowing face and a back full of energy)—reflected in the portrait. In addition, as the victims of Gimyosahwa (己卯士禍) were honored as Gimyomyeongseon (己卯名賢: A great sage in the year of 己卯), the academic lineage of Eastern Dohak (道學) was also established, and the image of the gentleman who formed the lineage of Neo-Confucianism, which became the model, was completely engraved in the minds of Seonbis through expressive concepts such as BinghoChuwol (氷壺秋月: The autumn moon reflected in the ice jar) and Gwangpungjewol (光風霽月: Clear wind and refreshing moon after the rain and wind). Thus, the moon jar was produced as a specific object that actually expressed this sentiment. The moon jar is a symbolic work of art from Joseon Neo-Confucianism that embodies the ideal political society and perfect human dignity pursued by Joseon scholars.