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A Hirado Okimono – Two Karako w/Dragon Mask – Meiji browse these categories for related items... All Items: Japanese: Ceramics: Porcelain: Pre 1900: item #560947 Please refer to our stock #Ichi 2395 when inquiring.
$895.00 |
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| A rare and charming small Hirado okimono molded and carved in the shape of a large festival Dragon mask – one boy sits astride the mask and the other is laying on the ground with his legs outstretched and his head inside the mask. Look carefully at the pictures of the side of the mask head and you can see the head of the boy inside – with fine details. Every aspect of this superb Hirado piece is done with the finest of detailing and is highlighted in the classic Hirado blue. These small okimono in Hirado are quite rare - and are even more so with this complex a design. The okimono measures 2 1/2" high by 2 1/2" wide by 3 1/4" long. At the neck and upper chest it appears that the shiny glaze is missing and the plain white clay shows through. This does not go all the way around the piece so it may or may not be a repair – or could just be a kiln flaw to those small sections of the glaze. Easily one of the finest small Hirado pieces we have ever had in the collection. We date it to the mid Meiji period circa 1880-1895. Louis Lawrence, in his book "Hirado, Prince of Porcelain", accurately summed up why this Japanese porcelain is widely regarded as the finest to ever come out of Japan - it is a true world class ceramic made of the finest clay from Amakusa Island. Hirado is characterized by the extreme smoothness of the clay and its ability to adapt to very unusual shapes because of its malleability and resistance to running in the firing process. | |||||||||||||
