An antique cast bronze waniguchi bell or gong, the type used to hang in front of places of prayer and under temple eaves dated 1710. Often these can be found hanging over saisen-bako where the bell is rung by clanging a dangling rope with wooden corbel against the bell to awaken the gods; coins are tossed and a prayer given. Anyone who has been to a Japanese Temple or Shrine may have noticed one. A much thinner cast than the later bell we are offering

Antique Japanese bronze with gilt traces Quanyin statue, standing on a lotus pedestal.She holds a bottle in her left hand and a seashell in her right hand. With remnants of lacquer and gilt pigment.

18th century or later.

Dimensions: 12"H x 4" W x 4" D

Finely cast bronze censer on four linked feet with very elegant flower décor on the body and fretwork on the rim, patinated in a rich brown. Bottom decorated in low relief with repeating, extremely fine fretwork of faces. Seal on bottom: Dai-Nihon Bunsei nen Seimin sei. Japan, Edo period, early 19th century.
H H 2-7/8 x diam. 6 ½ inches.
Excellent condition

Murata Seimin (1761-1837), bronze sculptor active in Edo, well-known for his fine casting of bronze vessels and animals.

A Japanese handled mirror, e-kagami, decorated with a Hoo Bird in flight, a harbinger of Peace, combined with Waka Matsu, Young Pine, a common motif associated with the celebration with the New Year. The design can therefore be seen as symbolising a wish for a Peaceful New Year. In the right hand portion of the mirror reverse is a set of four characters reading Fujiwara Mitsunaga...

A high quality crisply cast Japanese mirror. The reverse of the mirror decorated in high relief with a conventionalised representation of the utopian Isle of the Immortals typical of the Edo period integrating into the design the auspicious Takasago twin branched pine tree with a pair of flying cranes and a Minogame in the left hand corner. All set against a crisp granular ground. Probably late Edo period, or possibly slightly earlier...

A five prong vajra or dorje. Bronze, with fine reddish green patina. Japan, 18th century. Length: 13 cm. Very good condition.

Japanese Buddhist reliquary made of gilt bronze and crystal in a miniature lotus lantern or stupa form. The sarira, or human pearls, are delicately displayed in the central portion of the reliquary through a crystal cylinder. Two types of sarira are divided between two levels, with three smaller yellowish churira on top (originating from the liver) and two larger, whitish sharira (originating from the head) on the lower shelf...

A fabulous mid Edo period bronze brazier with satin luster made up of a basin supported by four small rabbits with two small gourd shaped handles suspended from a belt of archaic designs. The top is a large dome pierced with geometric designs known as incense clock patterns and featuring a large hinged circular opening in front. It is 22 cm diameter, 34.5 cm tall (8-1/2 x 13-1/2 inches) and in excellent condition...

Cast bronze vase. Very elegant unusual shape. Decorated with a dragon in high relief. Probably Japanese rather chinese and very old Edo period, 18th century or before. The metal has an excellent patina of a beautiful brown color. Below a mark with Chinese characters. 205mm x 185mm. Slightly dented, barely visible. Original patina, not cleaned.

18th Century Japanese Three-Pronged Bronze Sankosho Vajra Buddhist Implement

It is 5.51 inches (14 cm) in length by 1.4 inches (3.55 cm) wide. It is 109.2 gram.

It is tarnished and has pitting, casting imperfections, firing cracks, oxidation, and surface wears and scratches (as seen in the photos).

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Fine Large Edo Period Japanese Tobacco Pipe (Kiseru) from the collection of a renowned author on and collector of Asian art. This imposing, oversized pipe of bamboo and bronze with its striking phoenix would have been smoked by a man of prestige, and the effect would have been quite intimidating. Acquired in Kyoto in 1985 by a renowned author on and collector of Asian art. 9 5/8 inches, 24.5 cm long. Very Good Condition.

A fascinating Japanese shrine bell known as, Waniguchi, or directly translated as Crocodile's mouth, which resembles the wide mouth of a crocodile. The bell is usually found in shinto shrines that enshrine deities that were imported to Japan or Shingon temples. The bell contains an inscription stating that the bell was originally donated by the ancestors of the donor in 1686 and a new bell was rededicated in 1839. The bell appears to be dedicated to Sometani Shinbei. Age: Late Edo Period, 1839...

A good quality mirror of comparatively small proportions decorated with a fine line drawn pattern of a double and single Chrysanthemum supported by a fence and a banded hedge set against a fine sand textured ground to the reverse of the mirror. Fine line drawing in this style first appears in the eighteenth century. The mirror is signed on the left hand side Fujiwara Mitsumasa...

Finely cast bronze censer on three cloud-shaped feet with a décor on the body of an elephant on one side, a baku or tapir on the other on a background of very fine repetitive fretwork, patinated in a rich brown. Stick-like handles parallel to the body. Bottom left undecorated, with a seal: Seimin sei (Cast by Seimin). Japan, Edo period, early 19th century.
Original cover lost and replaced by a wooden Chinese cover.

H w/o cover 3-1/8 in.; H w. cover 4-1/2 in; W 4-1/4; diam...

Dragon candlestick in bronze forming crucifix. Japan edo. This cruciform shape is unknown in Japanese art. I think it is a household crucifix for a Japanese Christian family who would have liked to have a discreet crucufix in their house. A non-Christian visitor would never have suspected that this three-candle dragon was a representation of Christ on the cross...

Hishaku-gata style yatate in bronze with brown patina. The hishaku-gata style was developed at the beginning of the Edo era, in the 17th century. It is characterized by an ink compartment (sumi tsubo) in the shape of a ladle. Here it is decorated with a frog.
The frog (kaeru) is associated with luck and wealth...

Hitotsusage tabacco pouch with a netsuke. Unlike the tabako-ire, there is no kiseru case.

Netsuke of kagamibuta type, made of two parts: a silver plate with peonies decoration and an ivory bowl.
Leather snuffbox (pouch) with menuki (metallic decoration) of a silver dragon. On the pouch, painted decoration of a Hôô phoenix surrounded by flowers. The phoenix and the dragon represent the imperial couple.

Japan - Edo period (1603-1863), 19th century
Net...

This is a large and spectacular 18th Century Bronze Cloisonne, Twin-Handle Urn with great Archaic form and color. It has two Dragon Head Handles. It is enameled with Penny Flowers and Leaves motif. It has a large mouth (five-inches wide), and it is decorated with a one-inch belt that separates its bulbous body from its neck. It has a raised foot rim. It is stamped with the Japanese kanji that spells the name of its maker: 嶋佐 Shimasa, and it is in excellent preserved condition. M...