Printed from Woolley & Wallis

Description

TWO JAPANESE GOLD LACQUER KOGO (INCENSE BOXES AND COVERS)
EDO OR MEIJI, 19TH CENTURY

The largest shaped as two conjoint rectangles, the top richly decorated with an oibako (the robe container for a warrior monk) beside a stream; with many leafy tendrils surrounding it and three kanji characters reading as Kazura / Tsuru ni mo (the Narrow Ivy Lane); the sides with an abundance of prunus blossoms and maple leaves; the other box of flattened rectangular shape and decorated with three Chinese sages to the top; the boxes with details rendered in gold fundame, hiramaki-e, hirame, kirikane, takamaki-e lacquer and the insides in nashiji; the largest box with mother of pearl and metal inlays, 4.9cm x 11.7cm x 8.8cm, and 1.7cm x 7.8cm x 7.1cm respectively. (4)

The three characters reading as 'the Narrow Ivy Lane' refer to the road at Mount Utsu (Utsu no yama tsuta no hosomichi), featured in the Tale of Ise (chapter nine). It is also famously depicted in Utagawa Hiroshige's woodblock print entitled 'Okabe, Gojusan Tsugi Meisho Zue' (Upright Tokaido). See the Museum of Fine Art, Boston, access. no. 11.10169a-i for a lacquer writing box similarly decorated with an oibako amongst ivy, a reference to the famous road.