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Komai Style Inlaid Bronze Cabinet, Meiji browse these categories for related items... All Items: Archives:Regional Art:Asian:Japanese: Pre 1920: item # 338737 Please refer to our stock # 6B-367 when inquiring.
B & C Antiques P. O. Box 291 Derby, CT 06418 203-929-7312 Guest Book SOLD |
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This exquisite Japanese gold inlaid miniature bronze chest features hinged doors which open to reveal two small drawers, all extensively worked in two shades of gold and decorated throughout with dragons, landscapes, peacocks and “ho-o” birds (phoenix). Meiji period (1868-1912). The black base bears an inlaid gold signature with a mountain mark containing a single character, possibly reading either “Iyama” or “Yamai.” The inlay method used is one known as “nunome-zogan,” an intricate technique in which thin sheets of gold or silver were hammered into a fine mesh-like grid engraved onto the surface of the iron ground. Rectangular panels on the two front doors are each decorated with a gold coiled dragon, and there is a gold ho-o bird on the inside of each door. Behind the latched doors are two tiny drawers in graduated sizes decorated with detailed landscape scenes including buildings and bridges and finished off with gold chrysanthemum knobs. One side of the cabinet has a rectangular panel with a landscape scene with temples beneath Mt. Fuji, and the other side depicts farm houses in a landscape with sail boats in the background, also in a rectangular panel. The large shaped rectangular panel on the back side has an extraordinarily detailed rendering of male and female pheasants in a landscape, and a coiled dragon within another rectangular panel completes the top. All shaped panels are surrounded by minutely detailed vine leaves and tendrils and flowers all done in gold. (Translation of the signature was provided by Apsara Enterprises.) Japanese metalwork, technically and artistically, has been unrivaled by that of other cultures for many centuries. In Kyoto, the Komai family was recognized for its fine decorative metalwork during the Meiji period. Made by a very difficult process of metalwork, Komai wares typically had a base of iron or steel which was decorated with minute bits of gold and/or silver and copper in exquisite detail. Their most successful products were generally small items such as boxes, dishes, trays and these miniature chests. Also called damascene, high quality Komai wares are highly collectible. This simply spectacular example of Meiji metalwork is in perfect condition. Dimensions: 3 1/8” high, 2 ½” long, 2” wide. |
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