Antique Japanese / Chinese Sgraffito Pottery Vase or Junk??

Hi everyone, I’m embarrassed to post this, but I really don’t know if this a really old Asian piece, just b/c of the designs that look like serpents and the others that are like cloisonné shapes. Or is this just straight up junk? The designs are really poorly done. And I’m sorry for bad pics, I couldn’t do any better with the reflection. And I STILL don’t know why they are uploading sideways, can anyone help me with that?? Thanks for any thoughts.

 

The glaze looks Awaji, but unless that is some reddish discoloration and not the true clay color it's throwing me off. But you could try doing some searches for Awaji pottery and see what you find. Maybe there is Awaji redware.

 

Hi Laura, Awaji was the first thing I came across when looking too, but I haven’t seen anything really similar. The clay is light/buff colored. I’ve seen some somewhat similar Islamic pieces, but I’m still far off. Will keep at it. Thanks for the input!

 

Hi Laura, the mark on the base looks like a sideways 498 with a line underneath, and unless that is an importer's or retailer's mark that would make it American or European. An art potter experimenting with glazes?

 

Hi Valerie, that’s actually the price from the thrift store where I found it.

 

Ha! Is that $4.98? A bargain!