Softwood Lacquer

A large and magnificently decorated Japanese lacquer document box, ryoshibako, signed Umeboshi/Baikyo, late Edo or early Meiji Period, mid 19th century, Japan. The large document box, ryoshibako, of tall, rectangular shape with rounded corners, and fitted with an inrobuta (flush-fitting) cover with beveled edges. The exterior of this exquisite box is decorated all over with fifteen different raised reserves shaped as uchiwa (paddle) fans against a lush and intricate krikane ground imitating shagreen. The uchiwa shaped reserves all of takamaki-e, and exquisitely painted with designs of animals, flowers, and landscapes in silver, gold, maki-e, hiramaki-e, and takamaki-e, with kirikane, nashiji, and polychrome embellishments, upon gold lacquer fudame grounds. The interior of the lid is nothing short of spectacular, featuring a large design of a magnificent and beautifully detailed rooster and hen with chicks gathered around a lazy stream. Large stalks of chrysanthemum bloom behind them. All against an ethereal nashiji ground. The cover of the box features five reserves: 1. Three minogame (turtles with long tails), symbolizing longevity 2. "Narihira Crossing the Sumida" from The Tales of Ise...

A good Japanese carved cinnabar three case inro with mixed metal ojime, Meiji period, late 19th century, Japan. The three case inro of standard form, comprised of three container se...

An extremely rare, possibly unique, Chinese export lacquer bureau for the Dutch market Canton, circa 1737 H. 118 x W. 102.5 x D. 63 cm Provenance: - Private collection, The Netherlands - J.K. Driessen Antiques, Arnhem (Art Fair Breda, 1989) - Noble collection, Belgium Literature: - C.J.A. Jörg, ’De handel van de V.O.C. in Oosters lakwerk in de 18de eeuw’ in: Nederlands Kunsthistorisch Jaarboek , Jr. 31 (1980), pp. 355-363 (ill.) - Annigje Hofstede, Nederlandse meubelen van Barok tot Biedermeier, 1700-1830, Waanders, Zwolle 2004, pp. 35-37 (ill.) This lacquer bureau is one of the four writing desks purchased in Canton in 1737, and as far as is known, this is the only remaining bureau of its type from the period. As the VOC believed that large pieces of import took up too much valuable space in their trading ships...

A simple and elegant Japanese lacquer hibachi stand with imperial chrysanthemum mon and copper liner, now modified as an usubata, late Meiji Period, ci...

A very attractive Japanese wood table top jewelry or collector's chest with marquetry and lacquer decoration, Meiji period, circa 1900, Japan. Previously in the collection of Asbjorn Lunde (1927 - 2017). The chest is crafted in the form of a Chinese seal...

Vintage South Asian hand painted wooden box with removeable lid - featuring a full length portrait of an Indian woman in a pink sari to the lid...

A spectacular Japanese lacquer and porcelain inlaid display cabinet on stand, kazaridana, Meiji Period, late 19th century, Japan. The sumptuous kazaridana of traditional display cabinet form, with several shelves and enclosed spaces for display and storage. The cabinet decorated all over in beautiful maki-e lacquer against a dense nashiji ground and inset with blue and white Arita porcelain plaques. The front of the cabinet of asymmetric design, with two open display shelves at staggered heights, and several doors enclosing storage areas of various shapes and sizes, including one hinged corner door, two pairs of sliding doors, and one pair of hinged doors opening to reveal a rounded inset corner shelf. A pair of drawers below complete the cabinet. All supported on a separate tall fitted stand. The corner door decorated with a bold scene of a samurai warrior fighting a demon. This most likely depicts the warrior Watanabe no Tsuna battling the demon Ibaraki-doji at Rashomon gate, in which Watanabe no Tsuna attempts to help a young girl return home, carrying her on his back, only for the girl to turn into a demon, which he then must fight. The top pair of sliding doors with a scene of a man playing the sho, a Japanese mouth organ, along the banks of a river with a waterfall in the background. The bottom pair of sliding doors with a waterfall scene on one side, while a scholar lounges with his attendants on the other. The pair of hinged doors finely decorated with a pair of fully armored samurai. The two drawers wonderfully decorated in the kodaiji style with a stream of rushing water and various plants and grasses. The cabinet is decorated in the round, with the top, sides, and base of the cabinet decorated with various scenes of flowers and birds, and inset with blue and white Arita porcelain plaques in the form of traditional fan. The fans painted...

This antique lacquered stacking box set is unsigned, but presumed to have originated from China during the Early Republic period of approximately 1920 and done in a period Chinese Ex...

A large Japanese transitional lacquer chest with gilt-metal mounts Edo period, early 17th century The rectangular chest with flat hinged lid decorated in gold, silver, and red ...

A fine Japanese pictoral style lacquer cabinet with gilt-metal mounts Kyoto, Edo period, 1670-1690 Decorated in Japanese relief lacquer work, black lacquer ground decorated...

A fine Japanese export black and gold lacquered pictorial-style dish Nagasaki or Kyoto, 1680-1720 The dish with wide flat rim of Keaki wood (Zelkova species) in black lacquer with...

Japanese Namban lacquer transition-style coffer with two drawers Kyoto/Nagasaki, circa 1650 The cartouches with gilt and red decorations of leaves...

A unique and exceptional Japanese miniature or dollhouse export lacquered chest Kyoto, circa 1620-1640 The chest of rectangular shape with a domed lid, decorated in Transition-style, in gold hiramaki-e on a black background within reserved lobed cartouches decorated with landscapes animated with birds and rabbits, on a shagreen or samegawa background. The borders are decorated with geometric friezes, the box with gilt-copper mounts, the interior decorated in red lacquer. Measures: H 9.2 x W 14.5 x D 7.2 cm This miniature is of exceptional quality and a perfect copy of the famous large size Transition-style coffers. It was most likely ordered by a Dutch lady for her dollhouse (poppenhuis), like the famous Petronella Oortman (1656-1716) doll-house, which is now one of the highlights in the collection of the Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, or Petronella Oortmans-de la Court’s (1624-1707) dollhouse in the collection of the Centraal Museum Utrecht. Sara Rothé of Amsterdam in 1743 ordered a miniature black lacquered ivory tripod table with gold chinoiserie decoration by Jurriaan Buttner (Monika Kopplin, European Lacquer, 2010, p. 56). Other Japanned dollhouse...

This antique set of lacquered nesting tables was made by Wong Kwoko Hing from Canton China in circa 1910 in the period chinoiserie style. These graduated nesting tables are construct...

A fine Japanese export red lacquer box with Masonic symbols Kyoto/Nagasaki, 1800-1820 Red lacquer decorated with scattered flowers and flying birds with long tails in gold, wit...