Japanese Inaba Cloisonne Enamel Table Screen
Catalogue:
Vintage Arts:
Regional Art:
Asian:
Japanese:
Enamel:
Pre 1960 item# 688634 (stock# 8-077)
|
click for details
|
B & C ANTIQUES
203-929-7312
$995
|
This superb miniature four-panel cloisonné table screen is meticulously decorated with pheasants and birds amid a variety of flowering trees and plants along a stream, all on a rich black enamel ground. Stamped on the back with the “Inaba” trademark and “Made in Japan,” it dates to the mid-20th century. Each panel is bordered with brass, and each rectangular base has an additional brass border within which are yellow and white cloisonne “karahana” flowers on a wired green cloisonné ground. It is the quality of the bird and floral designs which is truly breathtaking. The delicate silver wire work is meticulous, and the lush enamel colors -- which have beautiful shading gradations -- stand out brilliantly against the deep black ground. Each panel is a miniature work of art unto itself. The back is silvered brass which has been finely etched with a landscape design of boats on a lake with Mt. Fuji rising in the background.
The Inaba Company, founded by Inaba Nanaho in 1887, was one of the foremost cloisonné workshops during Japan’s Golden Age of cloisonne. It continues to produce cloisonné of the highest quality in Kyoto. Cloisonne is an artcraft which requires great technical knowledge as well as the skill to produce an aesthetically pleasing item using a combination of vitreous enamel and metal wires. The wires are arranged in designs upon the metal body, into the compartments (“cloisons”) of which the enamels are packed. The item is then fired repeatedly to bring the enamels above the level of the wires and then buffed and polished many times.
CONDITION is perfect, with absolutely no damage or restoration. DIMENSIONS: 7 3/8” (18.8 cm) high, 12 7/8” (32.8 cm) total length. Each panel is approximately 3 1/8” (8.0 cm) wide. Weight over 2 pounds.
|
|
Three Ando Cloisonne Enamel Tea Plates, Plum Blossoms
Catalogue:
Vintage Arts:
Regional Art:
Asian:
Japanese:
Enamel:
Pre 1940 item# 544224 (stock# 8-076)
|
click for details
|
B & C ANTIQUES
203-929-7312
$275 for Set of Three
|
Vintage boxed set of three lovely commemorative Japanese wireless cloisonne “meimeizara” (plates for the tea ceremony) wonderfully crafted in the shape of flowering plum blossoms. Dating to the early 20th century, they are housed in their original hinged, satin-lined presentation box which is marked “Ando Cloisonne” with a commemorative inscription. Soft white and pink translucent enamels cover a shimmering foil ground, which shows through as the separations and folds in the blossoms’ petals. The elegant simplicity of each diminutive plate is simply stunning. The reverse sides are finished in shiny black enamel. Likely introduced from China during the Nara period, the plum (“ume”) was initially the flower most frequently mentioned in Japanese poetry, and was celebrated for its sweet perfume, delicate blossoms, and habit of blooming at the end of winter. When teamed with pine and bamboo, the plum is known as one of the Three Friends of Winter (“shochikubai”).
The Ando Cloisonne Company began business in 1880 and has continued to produce fine cloisonné enamel wares. The company has won many prizes at Expositions in Japan and abroad and was granted appointment to the Imperial Household since 1900. Condition of the plates is perfect. There is a stain in the upper right hand corner of the satin inside the box. Dimensions: 4 ½” (11.5 cm) diameter, 3/8” (1 cm) high.
|
|
Three Ando Cloisonne Enamel Tea Plates, Shochikubai
Catalogue:
Vintage Arts:
Regional Art:
Asian:
Japanese:
Enamel:
Pre 1960 item# 537726 (stock# 8-075)
|
click for details
|
B & C ANTIQUES
203-929-7312
$225 for Set of Three
|
These three decorative wireless Japanese cloisonné “meimeizara” (plates for the tea ceremony) are decorated with pine, bamboo and plum blossoms (“shochikubai”) in soft translucent enamels on a shimmering foil ground. They date to the mid-20th century and come with their original velvet-lined presentation box. There is a paper label of the Ando Company on the reverse side which is finished in shiny black enamel. Delicate plum blossoms are outlined in pink and green enamels on the lower section of one plate. Purple, green and blue pine boughs decorate the second dish, and the third dish has green, yellow and purple bamboo leaves. The shochikubai is a widespread decorative and symbolic motif made up of the pine, plum blossom and bamboo. Sometimes referred to as the Three Elements of Happiness or the Three Friends of Winter, they are symbolic of staying true to high ideals of scholarship, strength and beauty in time of hardship.
The Ando Cloisonne Company began business in 1880 and has continued to produce fine cloisonné enamel wares. The company has won many prizes at Expositions in Japan and abroad and was granted appointment to the Imperial Household since 1900. Condition is excellent, with no chips, breaks or cracks. The tiny faint brown spots seen on the rims of the plum and bamboo plates are firing flaws beneath the enamel. Dimensions: 4 ½” (11.5 cm) diameter, 3/8” (1 cm) high.
|
|
Japanese Cloisonne Enamel Covered Box
Catalogue:
Vintage Arts:
Regional Art:
Asian:
Japanese:
Enamel:
Pre 1960 item# 131775 (stock# 8-060)
|
click for details
|
B & C ANTIQUES
203-929-7312
$125
|
This round Japanese cloisonne covered box, which is likely an incense storage container or kogo, dates to the mid-20th century. The cover is decorated with mauve and white flowers which are enclosed in thick brass wires on a mauve ground. A delicate tiny butterfly hovers above one of the blossoms. Stylized blossoms and leaves in the same colors decorate the sides. The interior and the base are covered in turquoise enamel, and the rims and foot ring are crafted of brass. Incense (“ko”) was introduced into Japan along with Buddhism around the sixth century, and it has remained a part of religious ceremonies ever since. Incense also played an important role in the tea ceremony. After cleaning the rooms before the guests arrive, incense was used to purify the space spiritually and help separate it from secular space. The incense was kept in small containers such as this one and conveyed with chopsticks into the fire in the brazier. Condition is excellent. There is some minute pitting and a small area where the enamel has worn in the inside of the bottom of the box. Overall dimensions: 2 ¾” diameter, 1 ¼” high.
|
|
|
|
|
member, TROCADERO
© 1998-2008 All Rights Reserved
