Accessories
Box: Paulownia wood with white lacquer, inscribed
Matching lid with reverse inscription: by Katagiri Sadayoshi
Hikiya: Black lacquer
Dimensions
Height: 7.3 cm
Body diameter: 8.9 cm
As a blue-shelled Meibutsu incense container, this is one of the most renowned among the few surviving examples, frequently noted in records from the formative period of the tea ceremony.
The design of a seated Hotei figure scattered with treasures is standard; being called “old-style,” it may be a work from around the Yuan dynasty in China.
Several other variations of the surrounding patterns exist, likely imported in small numbers during the Muromachi period.
All such pieces are recorded in the Meibutsu-cho (Catalogue of Famous Tea Utensils).
This incense container is recorded in the box as having been owned by Katagiri Iwami-no-kami (of Iwami Province). Furthermore, Katagiri Sadayoshi, a descendant, wrote the following in the box inscription:
Kyoto: From the Matsuda family, a document of provenance passed down to ancestors, along with one letter of endorsement in the handwriting of the tea master Haruya Sōshun from the Taikō era. This is recorded here. An’ei 8th year. Signed, etc.
