Edo furniture was created during a flourishing time for the decorative arts owing to the stability of the Tokugawa shogunate rule in Japan. Spanning from 1603 to 1867, this era of peace and economic growth supported artistic advancements in lacquer, woodblock printing, porcelain and other artisanal trades. Because the country was largely isolated, there was little outside influence, leading to centuries of exceptional attention to the design of its furnishings and the quality of its traditional arts.
Unlike during the Meiji period that followed, with an increase in domestic and international markets, furniture during the Edo period was predominately commissioned by the ruling class, although people from across social groups benefited from the burgeoning metropolitan hubs for artisanal trades. For instance, Kyoto became a major center for lacquer art. Most furniture pieces were made from wood such as cedar or ash, including the era’s sashimono cabinets, which involved fine joinery and were rooted in the Heian period.
Sashimono cabinets, which were built by master craftsmen in a range of different wood types owing to the various trees that populate Japan, occasionally featured a stack of slender drawers as well as sliding doors. They were popular with everyone from samurai to kabuki actors. Tansu storage chests crafted from wood with metal fittings were also common in Edo-period homes. Some were designed to be easily portable while others were made to double as staircases.
Painted folding screens, called byōbu, were also fashionable, with Japanese artists inspired by nature, literature and scenes of history and daily life to create vivid works. In Buddhist temples and the palatial homes of the aristocratic class, fusuma, or large sliding panels, would sometimes be adorned with gold or silver leaf. These dividers allowed interiors to change throughout the day, closing in small spaces for personal use or reflecting candlelight to illuminate communal spaces after dark.
Find a collection of Edo tables, lighting, decorative objects, wall decorations and more furniture on 1stDibs.
Japanese antique stone Buddha statues / Underworld scribe / Edo period/SC168
Located in Sammu-shi, Chiba
This is an exceptionally rare stone statue of Shiroku, carved during the Edo period (18th–19th century). Shiroku is the scribe who serves under Enma Daiō, the great judge of the und...
Stone
Japanese antique stone Buddha "Nyoirin Kannon" Edo period / 1750-1850
Located in Sammu-shi, Chiba
This is a statue of Nyoirin Kannon (Nyoirin Kannon) created in Japan during the mid- to late Edo period (circa 18th to 19th centuries). Nyoirin Kannon is a form of Kannon Bodhisattva...
Stone
Japanese antique stone Buddha / Divine General / Guardian deity / Edo period
Located in Sammu-shi, Chiba
This is a stone guardian deity statue created in Japan during the mid to late Edo period (18th–19th century). It is carved from a single piece of natural stone. With a height of 38.5...
Granite
$1,920Sale Price|49% Off
Japanese Tall Antique Stone Garden Spiritual Jizo 19thc. 30 Inches
Located in South Burlington, VT
From our recent Japanese Acquisitions An early and hard to find Japanese large 30" tall scale hand carved stone Jizo holding his staff of compassion. Signed on both sides in kanj...
Stone
Japanese Rare Serene Stone Buddha Kanon Guan Yin, 19th century
Located in South Burlington, VT
From our recent Japanese Acquisitions Imagine this wonderful antique stone sculpture in your garden- a warm and lovely example seated in a quiet, relaxing pose- she may be seen In ...
Stone
$2,280Sale Price|20% Off
Japanese Large Antique Stone Garden Kanon Guan Yin in Royal Ease 19thc, signed
Located in South Burlington, VT
Big, Beautiful And Signed From our recent Japanese Acquisitions An early and hard to find Japanese larger scale hand carved stone Kanon in a mudra of contemplation. Nyoirin Kannon ...
Stone
$3,040Sale Price|20% Off
19th Century Japanese Hand-Carved Granite Double Jizo Sculpture
Located in South Burlington, VT
Large work of garden art, 18th/19th century, 200 years old Japanese stone rectangular plaque Jizo Bosatsu in unusual "double Jizo" Desojin panel form. It stands tall in a fine m...
Granite
$1,242Sale Price / set|65% Off
H 12 in W 12 in D 6 in
Pair of Stone Foo Dogs Candle Holder Garden Statues
Located in Somis, CA
A pair of magnificent stone foo dogs, meticulously hand-carved from solid stone. Their muscular forms, wide eyes, and open mouths while adorable convey ...
Stone
Carved Buddha Bust Thai Buddhist Art 1930
Located in Potters Bar, GB
Extra Large carved Thai wood painted gold buddha head bust This stunning buddha bust is mounted on a wooden block and is extremely sturdy Circa 1930s Good size at over four feet tall...
Wood
Cast Stone Garden Pagodas A Pair
Located in Bradenton, FL
Beautiful large pair of Japanese cast concrete Pagoda Garden Statues. These statues are made of durable, weather resistant concrete and have a muted stone-gray appearance with subtle...
Concrete
19th Century Sculpture of Guan Yu '关羽'
Located in Dublin 8, IE
19th Century sculpture of Guan Yu (??), a guardian deity. Guan Yu (d. A.D. 219), a warrior of the late Han dynasty (206 B.C.–A.D. 220) renowned for his valo...
Metal
Late 19thC Cast Iron Lawn Jockey in Old Paint
Located in Port Jervis, NY
Spectacular and most likely a 19th century representation of a lawn jockey in cast iron. In excellent antique condition with minimal wear, some separation at the seams where they joi...
Iron
Tranquil Chinese Stone Bodhisattva Head
Located in Chicago, IL
Exuding an energy of calm and tranquility, this larger-than-life stone bust depicts a Buddhist bodhisattva in serene meditation. A disciple of the Buddha, a bodhisattva is a compassi...
Limestone
$1,500
H 15.95 in W 6.38 in D 3.94 in
Antique Chinese stone Buddha statue / before the 19th century / Tathagata
Located in Sammu-shi, Chiba
This is a seated stone Buddha statue believed to have been made in China. While its date of creation is unclear, the weathering of the stone surface, surface wear, and texture formed...
Stone
$4,800 / set
H 24 in W 15.5 in D 10 in
Japanese Big Antique Hand-Carved Stone Happy Couple Bring Joy to your Heart, 24"
Located in South Burlington, VT
This duo -pair -couple bring joy and happiness to you and your garden. This pair are considered to be deities of marriage and fertility. Large work of garden art hand carved in the ...
Stone
Japan Tall Antique Classic Edo Period Kasuga Stone Lantern
Located in South Burlington, VT
An early antique beauty with all original pieces. Please view our video. Japan, a tall and stone lantern with fence like engraved designs on its firebox , carefully crafted in six ...
Stone
Large Antique German Painted Garden Gnome Figure, C. 1920s
Located in Bristol, GB
ANTIQUE GNOME STATUE A characterful depiction of a typically cheeky gnome with a pointed hat, perched against a tree stump and holding a flower pot tha...
Terracotta, Plaster
Stone Cherub Statue
Located in Stamford, CT
Stone Cherub holding scrolled tablet statue (late 20th century) originally made in England from reconstituted stone. Signed on back David Sharp & Co. Inc....
Stone
$4,025
H 18 in W 18 in D 10 in
Chinese Qing Dynasty 19th Century Carved Stone Foo Dog Guardian Lion Sculpture
Located in Yonkers, NY
A Chinese Qing Dynasty period carved stone foo dog guardian lion from the 19th century, on square base. Created in China during the Qing Dynasty, this st...
Stone
Sold
H 35 in W 12 in D 12 in
Japanese Big Antique Stone Garden Spiritual Jizo Bodhisattva With Hat 35 Inches
Located in South Burlington, VT
From our recent Japanese Acquisitions An earlier and hard to find image of this Japanese large 35" tall scale hand carved stone Jizo Bodhisattva with a carved hat on his backside a...
Stone
Japanese Antique Stone Rice God Buddha Ensures Bountiful Harvest
Located in South Burlington, VT
Seldom Seen Arts and Crafts early 20th century "Mingei" folk art Buddha Of Rice Protection- an unusual find A charming early and seldom seen Japanese hand carved effigy of Ta-no-Ka...
Stone
Sold
H 18 in W 8 in D 7.5 in
Japanese Rare Serene Hand Carved Stone Shinto Rice Prosperity Goddess , 19thc
Located in South Burlington, VT
From our Japanese Acquisitions - An ancient design with an unique modern contemporary feel. Imagine this wonderful antique stone sculpture in your indoor gallery or favorite garden...
Stone
Sold
H 13.71 in W 8.35 in D 6.11 in
Japanese antique: Three monkeys from the Edo period / 19th century / "San-en"
Located in Sammu-shi, Chiba
[This item is sold as a set of three.] This stone statue of the "Three Wise Monkeys" is believed to have been created around the late Edo period in Japan. Widely known as "see no ev...
Stone
Sold
H 20.87 in W 11.03 in D 8.67 in
Japanese antique stone Buddha "Kannon Bodhisattva" / Edo period/ Garden ornament
Located in Sammu-shi, Chiba
This stone Buddha statue is thought to have been created during the Tenmei era (circa 1781-1789) in Japan's mid-Edo period. Although difficult to read, the characters "Tenmei" can be...
Granite
Sold
H 16.46 in W 9.06 in D 8.67 in
Japanese antique stone pagoda tip/Edo period/Temple item/Garden decoration
Located in Sammu-shi, Chiba
This is the upper tier of a pagoda that is said to have once stood within the grounds of a Japanese temple. In Japan, stone pagodas have long been built within temple grounds and rev...
Stone
Japanese Antique Stone Garden Kanon Guan Yin in Royal Ease 19thc.
Located in South Burlington, VT
Big, Beautiful And Signed From our recent Japanese Acquisitions An early and hard to find Japanese hand carved stone Kanon in a mudra of contemplation. Nyoirin Kannon Bosatsu is b...
Stone
Sold
H 12.6 in W 8.27 in D 5.91 in
Small stone Buddha made in the Edo period in Japan/18th to 19th century
Located in Sammu-shi, Chiba
This small stone Buddha dates back to the Edo period (around 1603–1868), and the moss and weathering on the surface of the stone quietly tell the story of time’s passage. Made from s...
Stone
Sold
H 24 in W 12 in D 8 in
Japanese Big Antique Stone Garden Kanon Guan Yin in Royal Ease 19thc 24 Inches
Located in South Burlington, VT
From our recent Japanese Acquisitions An early and hard to find Japanese larger scale hand carved stone Kanon in a mudra of contemplation. Nyoirin Kannon Bosatsu is beautifully depi...
Stone
Sold
H 16.54 in W 9.06 in D 4.93 in
Japanese antique stone Buddha “Nyoirin Kannon”/1750-1850/garden ornament
Located in Sammu-shi, Chiba
This Buddha is called "nyoi-rin-kannon" in Japanese. It is a Buddha statue that grants wishes as you wish and removes suffering. This sitting figure with his hands on his cheeks show...
Stone
Sold
H 9.57 in W 4.53 in D 3.23 in
Japanese antique small rice field god / Edo period / Jizo Bodhisattva stone stat
Located in Sammu-shi, Chiba
This is an old Japanese stone figurine in the shape of Jizo Bodhisattva. In Japan, there is a concept of Shinbutsu Shugo, which is the idea of merging gods and Buddhas. This statue...
Stone
Sold
H 26 in W 15 in D 7.5 in
Japanese Big Antique Stone Garden Kanon Guan Yin in Royal Ease 19thc 26 Inches
Located in South Burlington, VT
From our recent Japanese Acquisitions An early and hard to find Japanese larger scale hand carved stone Kanon in a mudra of contemplation. Nyoirin Kannon Bosatsu is beautifully depi...
Stone