Provenance
Yoshino Goun – Nezu Aoyama
Recorded in
Kunitai Kan Sayūchōki
Dimensions
Height: 2.8 cm
Body Diameter: 7.5 cm
Owner
Nezu Museum, Tokyo
The Kunitai Kan Sayūchōki also lists this “Red Flowers and Green Leaves” among the items recorded as “Carved Objects.”
Among tsuishu lacquerware, it is regarded as a superior piece. True to its name, it is made by layering various lacquers, then carving patterns as needed to create a beautifully colored surface.
This incense box, in particular, is circular with a straight-line pattern. Its lid depicts the Chinese scholar-gentleman Lin Hejing caressing a crane beneath a pine tree, fully showcasing the lacquer’s color techniques.
It was once owned by Yoshino Goun, a renowned connoisseur and collector of tea utensils in Osaka. When the Yoshino family’s collection was auctioned, Nezu Aoyama acquired it, and it has remained in his collection to this day.
Incense boxes of this type are exceedingly rare, and truly exceptional examples can be counted on one hand.
