In the center of the main room of traditional houses of the Edo and Meiji periods stood an open hearth in which a small charcoal fire was kept burning. Above the fire was a suspension device called a jizai (self-adjuster) from which an iron kettle could be hung and raised or lowered as necessary. A large wooden pothook hanger (jizai-gake) was suspended by a heavy rope from the high roof beams. The other end of this rope was attached to the adjuster (yokogi: crosspiece) through which the rope passed just above the iron hook. The weight of a pot on the iron hook pulled down on the rope and jammed it tight inside its hole through the crosspiece. Moving the yokogi to a horizontal position released this tension and permitted the kettle to be raised or lowered.

Wooden crosspieces were usually carved in fanciful forms having auspicious and protective symbolism. A yokogi in the form of a carp (koi) was meant to inspire and instill courage and perseverance in the male children of the family and thus help to bring about success in their subsequent careers. Carp, like salmon, swim upstream to spawn, struggling bravely to overcome barriers such as rapids and waterfalls. In addition to the symbolism of the carp, fish-shaped yokogi in general symbolized the presence of water and were thought to magically prevent the fire in the hearth from starting a conflagration and destroying the house.

During a Shinto style wedding, the marriage is consecrated in the ritual of “san-san kudo,” where the bride and groom each drink from three sake cups three times. The families of the bride and groom would bring sake to the wedding ceremony in a matched pair of large black lacquered boxes like these. This style of lacquered wooden sake container, which is rectangular in shape with inset ends, is called a sleeve cask because its shape is reminiscent of a Japanese kimono sleeve. Although sodedaru were originally made for ceremonial use by the higher classes, by the middle of the 19th century these rugged lacquer utensils were made for use by everyone.

Because of the Japanese preference for “sabi” and “shibui,” the very simplicity and unaffectedness of this piece makes it a perfect accoutrement for the tea ceremony. There is no English translation of the word “shibui.” It connotes the power of quietness and understatement -- especially in commonplace things -- to create an inner beauty. Utensils and implements with such quiet elegance were a special favorite among tea ceremony connoisseurs.

Although the tanuki is a real animal that resembles both a badger and raccoon, it is the mythical and magical tanuki which plays such a prominent role in countless Japanese legends and tales. Such a tanuki possesses the mystical powers to transform itself into any living or inanimate shape, and this mischievous animal is deeply entrenched in Japanese minds.

“Bunbuku Chagama” is an old Japanese folktale with numerous variations which gained popularity in Japan during the Edo period when tanuki were the subject of many folk stories and every family had an iron kettle kept hot above the family hearth. In one version of the tale, a tanuki is helped by a poor man who saved its life, so the tanuki turns into a chagama to help the old man make money. The woodsman sells the kettle to a priest, who in turn orders his assistants to clean it and use it to make tea. The tanuki-kettle was unhappy with temple life -- it was polished and used on the fire, which really hurt. So it returns to the woodsman, and thereafter makes money for the "woodsman turned traveling entertainer" by dancing as a kettle on a tightrope. In another version, a priest tries to catch a tanuki to eat for dinner, but the tanuki escapes by transforming itself into a tea kettle. The priest carries the kettle back to the temple, but when placed on the fire, the kettle sprouts arms, legs, a nose, and ears, and soon resumes its true tanuki shape. Artistic manifestation of this tale is seen on Japanese scroll paintings and on Japanese iron tea kettles like this one.

This type of bulbous bronze flower vase was used by the Ikenobo school, the oldest school of Japanese flower arrangement (ikebana). Kyoto was the birthplace both of ikebana and of the bronze flower vessel, and scrolls dating from the second half of the 17th century show the first examples of this most characteristic of Japanese bronze forms, the so-called futabana (two-flower) vase. By 1698, the futabana seems to have become one of the most popular ikebana vase forms, with handles that predominantly included dragons, shishi, butterflies and hares. With the emergence of flower arrangement and the tea ceremony as distinctively Japanese cultural pursuits, bronze casters began to develop new and innovative forms of vessels loosely based on Chinese originals but with an unmistakable Japanese elegance. These culminated in large bronze vases cast in exaggerated form for the classic, formal rikka style of flower arrangement, prevalent in the 17th century and early 18th centuries. With the re-opening of overseas contacts from the 1850’s, traditional styles were combined with the skills of the metal craftsmen and sword smiths in the manufacture of these magnificent showpieces, many of which were displayed at exhibitions in Europe and the United States. (See similar examples illustrated and discussed in the sumptuous book entitled FLOWER BRONZES OF JAPAN by Joe Earle.)

Over the centuries, Okinawa has become quite well-known for its cultural heritage and art. One of Okinawa's most distinct and well-known art forms is pottery, and the center for the pottery movement for the past three hundred years has been Tsuboya. This flask is an example of “joyachi” tsuboya ware, which is glazed and often colorful. Throughout the 20th century, Tsuboya had to overcome many challenges, including World War II, but it still remains famous as the center of quality art form pottery on Okinawa.