A rare large piece of Edo period Fushina Yaki pottery in the form of a parallelogram shaped box decorated on all sides with landscapes, including what is likely a view of Matsue castle, home of the Matsudaira clan. On hte lid cranes soar between garden rock formations. Inside a SEa Turtle, said to live 1000 years, occupies the center. Called a Jikiro, these types of large containers were used for serving and storing prepared foods...

Japanese Koransha Fukagawa Imari porcelain platter tray decorated in polychrome glazed pigments and gilt highlights with two birds flying over flowers and bamboo set against an unglazed dark brown matte ground. Two teal colored ribbon form handles are at the sides. Within a double foot rim, the base bears the red Koransha orchid mark of the Company of the Scented Orchid, founded in 1875, set against a white background. Gold gilt rim. Late 19th Century...

Large Japanese Meiji period rounded square form black lacquered wood deep tray decorated in gold and polychrome accents with three birds among flowers and bamboo above a stream at the bottom. The rim is gold. 14 3/4" square with a lip nearly 2 1/4" high. Late 19th to early 20th century. Very good overall condition with only a few fine scratches on the back and a few tiny dings on the top edge. From the collection of a Japanese woman in Tucson, Arizona.

Kawase Hasui (1883-1957)
Shinagawa (Rainy Season at Ryoshimachi)
Size: Oban. Approximately 15.5 x 10.25 inches.
Date: 1931.
Publisher: Watanabe Shozaburo. Round, black 6 mm seal at lower right, indicating a lifetime printing (1946-1957).
Signed and sealed by the artist.
Medium: Japanese woodblock print.
Reference: Hotei #218.
Condition: Original drying pinhole in left margin. Slight fading.
"Shinagawa was the 1st station on the Tokaido." - Hotei.

Wooden kobako of a chayote squash (sechium edule – en japonais hayato uri).

Japan, Shôwa Era (1926-1989)

Length: 2.76 in. (7cm) - Width: 1.57 in. (4.4cm)

Natsume in dark red lacquer, decorated with autumn leaves and cherry blossoms in hiramaki-e and nashiji. Interior in black lacquer.
Maple leaves (Momiji) are celebrated in literature for their beauty. Cherry blossoms (sakura) are symbols of renewal and the ephemeral nature of beauty. Embodying the flowers and leaves typical of autumn and spring, they are true visual spectacles to be admired during walk or a picnic...

Ikebana basket (hanakago) in wickerwork of polished bamboo of elongated cylindrical shape, with a twisted handle in shape of a bamboo.

Ikebana or Ka-do (the way of flowers) is a traditional Japanese art of flower arrangement. Unlike Western floral art, ikebana does not aim to emphasize only the beauty of the flowers and the harmony of colours...

Tall dark bronze vase decorated with a bas-relief depicting irises (hanashobu) ; the rim with an openwork border with maji-motive.

Bottom marks : Kakuha-Sei, the mark of Sano Takachika, Kakuha Kanzaemon IX (角羽勘左衛門 - active early Meiji period). In 1869 he started a bronze-ware business in Yokohama.

Japan – Meiji (1868-1912)

Height: 15.7 in. (40 cm) – Diameter: 7.9 in. (20 cm)
Netherlands Private Collection

Four-compartments inrô in black lacquer with a hirameiji background with peonies and butterflies in gilded maki-e. Rocky promontory in takamaki-e and kirigane. Interior in nashi-ji lacquer.

Boxwood netsuke in the shape of a toad on a leaf. Signe with the name of “Masanao from Yamada”. Ojime made of hard stone.

Inrô are small compartmentalized boxes hanging from the belt that are part of sagemono (hanging objects)...

Fine iron jizai of a butterfly with articulated wings.

The butterfly (choho) in Japan is perceived as "the soul of the living and the dead", the spirits of the dead taking the form of a butterfly on their journey to the other world. The butterfly spreading its wings is a symbol of femininity. It can also symbolize joy and longevity. This last motif is taken up by the samurai, seeing in its twirling figure a motive of good omen allowing them to reach immortality...

These pieces are a part of smoking set tabako-ire. It consists of a kiseruzutsu (pipe case) of a tonkotsu(tobacco pouch) in black lacquered crocodile leather. Both parts are bound by a leather link decorated with a red stone ojime.

The tonkotsu is decorated with a menuki (metallic decoration) gilded and skated copper. The menuki has the form of a sitting cross-legged man, joint hands, hidden by the long and wide sleeves of its coat...

Sculpture in chiselled and stained wood representing a hare lying down.

In Japanese, the hare and the rabbit are designated by a single word: usagi. The hare occupies an important place in Japanese legends and superstitions. Like many other animals, it is supposed to reach a fabulous age and become blue at five hundred years old...

Chiseled wood sculpture representing a sitting hare.

In Japanese, the hare and the rabbit are designated by a single word: usagi. The hare occupies an important place in Japanese legends and superstitions. Like many other animals, it is supposed to reach a fabulous age and become blue at five hundred years old...

Wooden netsuke of the demon Oni hiding in a foot warmer (anka) in order to protect himself from the bean seeds that are thrown at him. The beans are represented by two inlaid stones. His right arm stands out, a part of his head is visible through a small hole in the foot warmer.

The Setsubun festival came from China it is introduced in Japan around the 8th century. Its celebrates the arrival of spring...

Funny brown-patinated bronze featuring a mouse standing on its hind legs on a squash.

Japan – Meiji (1868-1912)

Height : 14 cm (5.51 in) - Length : 24 cm (9.45 in) – Width : 8 cm (3.15 in)

Very beautiful Japanese table with four legs in gold, black and brown lacquer with two richly decorated tops. The upper tray presents a decoration of bats, kumori (蝙蝠), in flight in gold hiramaki-e lacquer on a brown lacquer background...

Rectangular and flat lacquer Kobako (small box) representing a furoshiki knot seen from above. Fundame background, furoshiki in takamaki-e with floral pattern, inside the folds of the fabric with black and gold sayagata pattern with togidashi maki-e technique. The saya (or sayagata) pattern is composed of Chinese swastikas. This symbol, linked to Buddhism, represents qualities of intelligence, strength and peace. It is a sign of good o...

Antique Japanese stoneware jar from Shigaraki kiln. Beautifully uneven form with high shoulders, tapered body and a narrow foot. Made using the local sandy clay from the bed of Lake Biwa, Shigaraki ware is identified by the embedded granules of feldspar. Mineral glaze is spattered over the surface and areas of dark ash adds depth and a prized natural beauty. Shigaraki is known as one of the 6 great pottery regions of Japan.

Age: Edo Period (c. 17th century)

Dimensions: 17" hi...