Incense burner, Korea, Goryeo dynasty (918–1392). Bronze. H. 13 3/4 in. (35 cm). L.2016.43.8a–d. Photograph courtesy the National Museum of Korea

Burning incense was an essential part of Buddhist rituals. Most surviving Goryeo-period censers take the shape of a deep bowl on a fluted base; this vessel also has three legs and an ornate top. Metalworking—including bronze casting, as in this piece—was a highly sophisticated art during this period. Given the long-established centrality of Buddhism on the Korean peninsula by this time, it is no surprise that Buddhist objects form the core of extant Goryeo metalwork.