Chinese & Japanese Works of Art

The cloisonné technique, in which glass derived enamels were set in wire outlines (the so called ‘cloisons’ from the French word), was developed in China in the early Ming dynasty (1368-1644) and then used throughout, right up until the C20th, indeed pieces are still produced today. The style of enamelling here with fairly bold outlines to the decoration and the use of bright enamel colours suggests a dating here to the mid twentieth century which corresponds to the probable date of the accompanying wood stand. Perhaps intended as a desk ornament or possibly a flower vase, this piece could certainly find a home in a contemporary setting.

The town of Arita in the former Hizen Province, northwestern Kyūshū island, was a major centre for the production of porcelains in Japan. Best known for blue and white pieces it also produced polychrome wares as well, including the familiar Imari colourings. While similar to Imari, the wider palette of colours used here is usually termed ‘Arita’ and this bowl employs not only the colourings but also many of the decorative elements found in these wares. The angular form, though, is unusual. Dating is to the Meiji era (1868-1912) probably around 1880.

Toyohara Kunichika achieved great fame and distinction a Japanese print artist. Born in 1835 he studied under Toyohara Chikanobu and then Utagawa Kunisada (also known as Utagawa Toyokuni III) eventually using a combination of both his teacher’s names to create his own professional one. At first he worked within Kunisada’s studio and when his teacher died in 1865 was asked to design two memorial portraits of him. The beginning of the Meiji era (1868-1912) saw Kunichika issuing his own prints, often in themed series and he became known in particular for his portrayals of kabuki actors, indeed he regarded the theatre as almost his second home. A contemporary once wrote ‘"Print designing, theatre and drinking were his life and for him that was enough.’ He achieved great fame and was rated as one of the masters of woodblock printing. Contemporary observers noted Kunichika's skilful use of colour in his actor prints, but he was also criticized for some of his choices for unlike most artists of the period, he made use of strong reds and dark purples rather than the softer colours used previously, exploiting the recent import of new dyes from Germany. Red, for the Japanese, meant progress and enlightenment so there was probably hidden meaning here. Eventually Kunichika’s lifestyle took its toll and he died in poor health, aged 65. It had been a Japanese custom for people of high cultural standing to write a poem before death. Kunichika's own, inscribed on his grave, reads ‘Since I am tired of painting portraits of people of this world, I will paint portraits of the King of hell and the devils.’ For many years his prints fell out of favour but interest has now revived and Kunichika is regarded as one of the eminently collectible Japanese artists in the field and these two prints are an excellent example of his work.

Each print is accompanied by a printed text on fine paper which presumably describes the character represented. The second of them is accompanied by two sheets one of which has become attached in one small place to the print itself but could probably fairly easily be detached by a restorer. In general there are some typical signs of age with minor losses (illustrated), tears and folding but the colours remain bright and fresh.

The Fukagawa kilns produced the best quality Imari items made in Japan in the late nineteenth century for export to the West. Their history starts with Ezaiemon Fukagawa who in 1856 became head of his family's porcelain business and in 1875 founded Koransha (The Company of the Scented Orchid) in Arita, Japan, to produce tableware for export. In 1894 the modern Fukagawa company was founded by Chuji Fukagawa, with the Fukagawa trade mark of Mount Fuji and a stream, as its trade mark. Dating of these pieces is therefore towards the end of the Meiji period (1868 - 1912) probably around 1900. While the decoration is similar to that found on other Fukagawa pieces there are few, if any parallels, and tea ware pieces by the firm are not very often seen.

'Crackleware' glazed pieces, usually with 'bronzed’ bands, were a staple output of the Chinese potteries from the mid nineteenth century onwards and were produced in a wide variety of mainly vase shape forms, both in polychrome and blue and white and intended as decorative pieces for the Victorian rooms of the West. As with other ceramic types, the quality deteriorated and this piece is typical of the late productions with a more modest level of craftsmanship but still retaining a naif charm. As with many ginger jars, this one lacks its original domed cover which would have been decorated to match.

Please note that the stands are for display purposes only.

Kutani (the word means 'nine valleys') porcelain was made at various factories in the former Kaga province of Japan. The earliest pieces were in a completely different style employing a palette of colours emphasising green, the so called 'Ko Kutani'. Production of this ceased around 1730, and manufacturing was not revived until the early nineteenth century when the more familiar colourings of iron red and gold were introduced. Vases, bowls and plaques are found in this style but also teapots of which this is a typical example. The decoration is of birds and flowers on a faintly craquelure glaze ground and the lid has a complementary ‘brocade pattern’ design. The base has a two character mark reading ‘ku’ ‘tani’ as is often found. The basket is of tightly woven wicker with the metal fitments as described and is probably Chinese in common with many similar examples, although the Japanese did, of course, have a basket weaving tradition of their own. Slight damage means that the ensemble has to be of decorative value rather than practical use but it remains an interesting and entertaining souvenir item from the orient.

The European love of tea began in the mid seventeenth century after it had been introduced to the West by the Dutch East India Company. It was at first an expensive luxury item to be enjoyed by the select few including the diarist Samuel Pepys who wrote in 1660 that he was at a meeting attended by, amongst others, Sir Richard Ford, who ‘…talked like a man of great reason and experience. And afterwards did send for a Cupp of Tee (a China drink) of which I never had drank before) and went away.’ Pepys seems not to have been very fond of ‘tee’ which was fortunate because it could cost up to a hundred times more than the sherry for which he had a much greater liking. The consumption of tea demanded the receptacles to brew it in and drink it from and the Chinese happily obliged. At first they sent over bowls and saucers (the tea cup was only to follow around a hundred years later), tea pots and tea ‘caddies’, which, bearing in mind the extremely high cost of the tea, were designedly small. The word is thought to be derived from ‘catty’, the Chinese pound, equal to about a pound and a third in the English standard of weight. The earliest tea caddies were rectangular with four small feet, soon to be followed by a flattened octagonal form with a plain bottom, in both cases being fitted with a round ‘cap’ cover.

During the eighteenth century the repertoire of the tea service expanded considerably to include a teapot, teapot stand, spoon tray, sugar basin and cover, cream or milk jug and cover, a saucer dish for serving small biscuits, tea bowls and saucers and, of course, the small tea caddy and cover itself, all decorated in the same colourings and design. At the same time, the form of the tea caddy was considerably altered and the examples now produced had a flattened rectangular body with an arched top, slightly overhanging. The circular neck was completed by a circular cover with a broad rim and a knob finial above an unglazed central ‘stopper’ which fitted inside the top of the piece. Earlier examples were extremely well defined while the later ones were slimmer and of a less precisely formed shape.This piece, therefore, probably dates to the middle years of the Qianlong period (1736-1795).

Accordingly, we have here an example of the Chinese potter’s work at its best. As the seams at the side indicate, the body of these caddies was mould made in two parts and then joined together with the neck added. An additional attraction here is the fluting to the body which is much less common. The decoration is in underglaze blue, the colour being applied to the body before glazing and firing, and the design is a typical stylised landscape scene, a rocky outcrop in the foreground with trees and pavilions and behind a lake with flying birds and another mountainous range in the background again with buildings. As often, small figures can be seen occupying the nearer pavilions. The shoulder is decorated with a classic stylised geometric pattern border with diaper work and key pattern, the neck has two small floral sprays and the lid has a stylised floral border with cell work. To add opulence to the effect, the caddy (and indeed doubtless all of its companion pieces) was given the enhancement of gilt decoration on its arrival, most likely in one of the London workshops.

Truly, then, this was a luxury item at the time and it has survived in a remarkable state of preservation to the present day, intact and with its original cover, which is quite uncommon. Doubtless now to be admired rather than used, this tea caddy is a true collector’s gem and an outstanding example of Chinese Export ware at its best.

Flowering prunus or plum blossom is one of the most iconic of the decorative designs used by Chinese potters and first appears in the Kangxi period (1662-1722). Kangxi ginger jars in the pattern were highly prized by Victorian collectors with one example, the legendary ‘Huth’ jar, fetching 5900 guineas, a little over £6000, at auction in 1905, a price equivalent to over a quarter pf a million pounds today. The tree symbolises perseverance and renewal and was usually shown against a pattern of ‘cracked ice, representing the end of Winter and the beginning of Spring. Branches of plum blossom convey the ‘Five Blessings’ : longevity, wealth, health, love of virtue and a peaceful death. The number five was an auspicious number for the Chinese and is reflected in the five petal form of the prunus flower.

Once evolved, the design was continuously repeated by Chinese potters and is even produced today. Many of late nineteenth century pieces display a rather more slapdash interpretation of the pattern as here where the ‘cracked ice’ of the eighteenth century pieces is replaced by the repeated brush strokes of a blue wash ground and the painting of the tree itself is sketchy. The style of decoration and the paste of the foot indicate a circa date to around 1900, but this modest interpretation of centuries old pattern still possesses a charm of its own.

The town of Arita in the former Hizen Province, northwestern Kyūshū island, was a major centre for the production of porcelains in Japan. Best known for blue and white pieces it also produced polychrome wares as well, including the familiar imari colourings. While similar to Imari, the wider palette of colours used here is usually termed ‘Arita’ and the decorative appeal of the style is clear. These bowls probably come from an original set of five and with slightly coarser decoration than usual were probably made for the domestic market. The paste of the foot implies a dating to the Meiji era (1868 - 1912) probably around 1880.

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Trade with Japan in the seventeenth century was predominantly directed by the Dutch merchants who had a trading station at Nagasaki. It was their requirements which dictated what the potteries at Arita should make and by the 1660s they were demanding ‘red wares’, the Japanese term for pieces in the colourings of underglaze blue, red and gold, sometimes with additional colours as well. Once made, these porcelains were sent to the port of Imari from where they began their journey to the West and from which they were to take their name. They proved to be immediately popular on their arrival in Holland and the auctions of the cargoes as they arrived were extremely successful. This led to a plentiful supply of chargers, bowls and vases (many with covers and some forming part of a five piece garniture) which were to decorate the royal and aristocratic homes not only of Holland itself but throughout Europe and particularly in Great Britain, where they can be seen today.

While the forms were relatively plain, the decoration was lavish, employing panels with floral or animal elements on a densely covered ground, often with swirling designs. Two typical examples are illustrated in images (9) and (10), both dating from the late seventeenth or early eighteenth century. The popularity of the style naturally led to it being copied and the Chinese started to produce it from the late Kangxi period (1662-1722) onwards, occasionally following the originals closely but soon producing their own adaptations which were often slightly more restrained and refined. By the beginning of the nineteenth century, Imari exports from Japan and China had lapsed but their place was soon taken by pieces from the European and British manufacturers. In England both Spode and Mason’s Ironstone, amongst others, produced their own version of ‘Imari’, even attempting vases in the colourings as well as flatware. Eventually Japan re-entered the market and from 1860s onwards the West was again supplied in quantity with their Imari wares, although by the end of the century some of these were of rather poor quality.

But at their best, the Japanese workshops in the nineteenth century could well match the work of their predecessors and this charger is a prime example. The form is almost that of a very shallow bowl with the sides evenly curving upwards (see image 4) and an unglazed footrim to the reverse. The nineteenth century decorators often created their own designs, but the decoration here follows the originals very closely indeed, even in the colouring of the underglaze blue which has an almost blackish tinge which is also seen in the two earlier examples illustrated. There are three large fan shape panels with flowering peony and three smaller ones with lotus leaf borders and ‘ho ho’ birds, all on a blue ground with stylised gilt floral decoration. One can almost see a wheel here and the design nearly seems to be in motion which was, again, a feature of earlier pieces. The reverse has just three sprays of peony which allows one to see the quality of the glaze.This, combined with the paste of the foot and the general quality of the decoration all point to a mid nineteenth century dating, probably circa 1870 after trade with Japan resumed as a result of the Meiji restoration.

Japanese Imari wares deservedly retain their popularity today and this charger would be an elegant addition to a contemporary interior or even indeed to a stately home itself.

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Yoshitoshi Tsukioka (1839-1892) was one of the last masters of ‘ukiyo-e’ (literally ‘images of the floating world’) a tradition of paintings and prints which flourished in Japan from the seventeenth to the nineteenth centuries. Known at first for his ‘Bloody Prints’ which concentrated on violence and the depiction of death, Yoshitoshi moved on to gentler themes later in his life, culminating in the series of one hundred prints entitled ‘One Hundred Aspects of the Moon’ which was published by Akiyama Buemon between 1885 and 1892, the final images appearing in the year of the artist’s death. The prints featured subjects from traditional Japanese and Chinese history and legend with the moon appearing in all but a few, giving a linking motif for the series as a whole. They were released singly or in groups every few months and proved to be enormously popular, with queues forming of collectors eager to purchase the new releases as soon as they became available.

This print was entitled ‘Kagekado, Moon of Yamaki Mansion’ and was issued in March 1886, therefore one of the earliest in the series. The scene depicted comes from the ‘Heike monogatari’ or ‘The Tale of the Heike’ an account complied before 1330 of the struggle between the Taira clan and Minamoto clan for control of Japan at the end of the 12th century in the Genpei War (1180–1185). Yoshitoshi’s audience would, no doubt, have been familiar with this. At the beginning of the conflict the head of the Minamoto clan sent his retainer, Kagekado, to kill the leader of the Taira clan, Kanetaka. We see here Kanetaka behind a screen, lit up by the moon, with his sword poised to strike. But Kagekado cunningly put his helmet onto the end of his spear causing Kanetaka to attempt to aim for it which left him exposed and allowed Kagekado to strike in turn a fatal blow and kill him. Yoshitoshi illustrates the moment just before Kanetaka’s death with Kagekado about to make the deadly thrust with his spear with deceptive helmet about to fall off. The detail is exceptional with particular attention given to the wood panel to the rear, created with an imitation woodgrain effect, where a woodblock’s natural grain is emphasized through soaking in water; in addition the black details have been burnished to imitate lacquer.

The artist's seal, ‘Taiso’, is printed in red relief within a rectangular cartouche to the lower left and his signature can be seen above (see image 4). The title, ‘Kagekado, Moon of Yamaki Mansion’, appears in the square cartouche to the upper right and the series title, ‘One Hundred Aspects of the Moon’, in the rectangular cartouche next to it (see image 5). On the reverse is affixed an identification note from the British Museum dated 1983 confirming the artist and the subject of the print which appears to have survived in a remarkably fine state of preservation.

The striking glaze effects seen here are usually attributed to the kilns at Shiwan, a district of the provincial town Foshan which is located near to Guangzhou, better known in the West as Canton, in the Guangdong province. But the place of manufacture is here clearly advertised by the mark on the base which attributes it to the well known potteries of Jingdezhen, for centuries one of China’s most prolific producers of porcelains for both the domestic and export markets. This particular glaze, though, seems to be a late twentieth century creation with no obvious precedents from the past. Just possibly it derived from an accident of the firing process which was then deliberately imitated. Certainly, the ‘look’ is modern and the interior of the neck reveals one of the hallmarks of the very late pieces made at Jingdezhen where the small but regular potting rings indicate manufacture by machine rather than the hand of a potter (see image 8). The sandy and slightly coarse paste of the foot is fully consistent with this.

By repute, similar vases were bought new in the 1980s so there is, at least, a degree of age here and the overall effects combine sophisticated techniques with inventive decoration to produce a piece of considerable and striking appeal.

(As sometimes happened with the manufacture of larger ceramic items, this vase emerged from the kiln with a slight ‘lean’ when viewed from certain angles, probably due to irregular shrinkage of the clay body during the firing process. Images (11) and (12) are intended to highlight the ‘fault’ but the final image (13) shows how this can easily be corrected with the addition of a wood stand built up inside to provide corrective support.)

Chinese cork carving, also known as cork sculpture, is a traditional Chinese art form depicting intricate landscapes with pavilions and animals. The cork (from cork bark of trees) is cut, carved, coloured and glued together into pictures after which it is wood-framed, usually painted in black lacquer, with clear glass protection. The tradition seems to have begun in the early twentieth century when the Chinese wood carving artist Wu Qiqi from Xiyuan village in Fuzhou was inspired by a wood carving picture that brought back from Germany to create something in imitation using locally cork for the main elements with rice paper plant to form the animals. The sculptures proved popular and many were exported. This piece is an excellent example with a particularly attractive frame and probably dates to before the Second World War.

This is an example of Japanese marquetry technique known as ‘Yosegi-Zaiku’ in which intricate geometric patterns made from small pieces of wood were used to decorate the surfaces of small pieces of furniture such as jewellery cabinets or ‘kotan-su’ (kodansu). The technique originated in the town of Hakone, near to Tokyo, in the Edo period (1601/3 to 1868) but continued into the Meiji era (1868-1912) and beyond. Some of the pieces produced have an elaborate array of designs, but what we appear to have here is a sample or specimen piece showing the types of effect the craftsman could produce. This is further complicated by the fact that the top right drawer, which has no decoration at all and is not signed underneath like the other two, appears to be a later replacement with a different form of handle. But there is still some charm and no small amount of skill here. Dating is most probably to the late nineteenth century and this experimental ‘kodansu’ could easily find a place in an early twenty first century setting.

This piece comes from an original tea service which would have comprised a wide variety of objects decorated in the same pattern to include a teapot, cover and stand, a caddy and cover, a sugar bowl, a cream jug and cover, bowls and saucers and so forth. The form can be seen (along with a matching teapot stand) at Lunsingh Scheurleer, Chinese Export Porcelain pl 149. Dating is to the middle of the Qianlong period (1736-1795) around 1760. The quality of the decoration speaks for itself and this piece has survived intact with very little wear to the decoration.