Catalog (185)

A very unusual basket made of pine cones bound together on edge enclosed in the original wooden box dated New Years of Showa Six (1931) titled Chiyo no Matsukasa (Cones of the Ancient Pine). The basket is 20 cm (8 inches) diameter, 33.5 cm (13-1/4 inches) tall and comes with the original bamboo insert. It is in overall fine condition. I have never seen another like it.

Coxcomb decorates the deeply carved surface of this box covered in green and red lacquer outside, gilded with gold inside in the Kamakura-bori carving tradition. It is 22 x 25 x 5 cm and comes enclosed in a period wooden box. Kamakura-bori is a type of lacquer ware made in the area around the ancient capital city of Kamakura in Kanagawa prefecture. The tradition is based on carved lacquer wares imported from China during the Kamakura era. However, many Japanese lacquer craftsmen did not adopt the Chinese method of layering lacquer and then carving it; instead, they created Kamakura-bori, a method of carving wood and then coating the already prepared surface with lacquer. Initially, sculptors of Buddhist ritual implements and temple carpenters that were influenced by Chinese art works started to carve items made of Japanese Judas tree or ginkgo and applied a lacquer finish to the pieces in order to mass-produce Buddhist altar fittings resembling carved Chinese lacquer without the extensive drying time. This style came to be known as Kamakura-bori, or literally Kamakura Carving, and the adoption of traditional Japanese patterns made the technique unique to the island nation. Kamakura-bori features chisel markings left intentionally to accentuate patterned areas. Another unique technique is to sprinkle black ink on a vermilion lacquered surface, then polish down the highlights in order for the patterns to stand out from the darkened background. The carving and lacquering techniques of Kamakura-bori have evolved for the past 800 years. Today, production has spread to include everyday goods as well.

An unusual woven basket of bamboo strips and roots in the shape of a cocoon or bird nest dating from the 20th century. It can be used flat on a table or even better suspended on the wall or pillar. It is 43 cm (17 inches) long and in excellent original condition.

This is a breathtaking work of art, a cherubic figure forms the finial of this later Edo period ceramic incense burner. Atop the lid strides a youth in purple robes wearing a lotus leaf as a hat and blowing a flue, a staff lays at his feet. About the square box of the ash pot are exquisite-colored designs lined with gold like precious jewels dangling from the edge. Two beast heads protrude from the sides and the entire is elevated on a square foot. The koro is 8 x 11 x 17 cm (3-1/4 x 4-1/2 x 7 inches) and is in excellent condition. It comes enclosed in an age darkened Kiri-wood box with chamfered edges titled Ninsei Fue-buki Jizo Koro annotated inside the lid Zuiichi (Superlative) followed by a Kao signature traditionally used by Tea Masters, Literati and important figures such as samurai and (Edo period) court figures.

Pink and blue iris blossom among the green promise of Spring promised on this elegant vase by Miyagawa (Makuzu) Kozan enclosed in a wooden box annotated by the current head of the Makuzu Family in Kyoto, Makuzu Kosai. It is titled Yukasai Shobu no zu Kabin. It is 30.7 cm (12 inches) tall and in excellent condition.
The name Kozan was granted by Prince Yasui-no-Miya in 1851 in honor of the tea ware produced during the later Edo for the imperial Court by the tenth generation head of the Kyoto pottery family Miyagawa Chozo. The Kozan (Makuzu) kiln as we know it today was established in Yokohama in 1871 by the 11th generation head of the family where he reinvented the family business. He immediately set out on a journey which would propel the Kozan name to International Celebrity status, and send his wares throughout the globe. Pieces produced there were marked Kozan, or Makuzu, the official kiln name, or both. Although he had been running the daily operation since the late 19th century, the first son, Hanzan, succeeded as head of the kiln, in 1912, with the father officially retiring to spend more time on his own research and art. Kozan I dies in 1916. The kiln was run by Hanzan through the early Showa era, he officially taking the name Kozan II in 1917, after one year mourning for his fathers passing. Under Hanzan the kiln was commissioned for works to be presented to the Prince of Wales, the 25th wedding anniversary gift for the Taisho emperor and the Showa Emperors coronation gift. The kiln was completely destroyed in the bombing of Yokohama in 1945. For more on this illustrious family see Bridging East and West, Japanese Ceramics from the Kozan Studio by Kathleen Emerson-Dell.