Perfect Form, Perfectly Spare Chinese Stoneware Ear Cup, c. 600 AD secretary is the first I've found

is the first I've found with a series of misspellings though--most poignantly in the repetition of "To learn to write is important

though it almost appears as if that oval frame is part of the image itself

I have not amped up the color on this guy

"Made in Japan" stamped on the bottom

Perfect Form, Perfectly Spare Chinese Stoneware Ear Cup, c. 600 AD secretary is the first I've foundTo my eye the most perfectly minimal, perfectly proportioned shallow vessel, just what it needs to be and not a thing more, this is a very old Chinese "ear cup", c 600 AD, which I purchased from a collector, dealer and friend in Maine. Chinese ear cups, or 'erbei' in Chinese, are an ancient form, functional as vessels for drinking, but more broadly embodying Chinese philosophy, aesthetics, and social customs and exquisite craftsmanship. And indeed,