A pleasure craft of solid burled wood covered in clear, black and red lacquer with inlayed mother of pearl designs which opens up to be a picnic box. The fore-peak is removable and opens to hold chopsticks. The upper cabin is a sake bottle, the roof a large plate, the the lower cabin food and rice storage. The aft holds 6 small plates, and the structure all can be removed to reveal the food storage in the hold. It is roughly 20 x 8-1/2 x 11 inches (50 x 21 x 28 cm)...

Something I have never seen before, a set of pillows for one couple from Shimabara, one of the oldest pleasure districts of Kyoto, enclosed in the original Kiri-wood storage box. The man’s pillow is a simple roundel of soft leather. The woman’s, made for a geisha and her elaborate coiffure, is a small tapering black lacquered box with a drawer for a hair pin, to the top of which is secured a brocade pillow with a silk chord...

An exquisite Japanese pillow, the body woven with red pigment lacquer, the ends lacquered in black with gilt lacquer. One end depicts the mythical creature Baku, said to devour bad dreams. The other end is a floral scene with beautiful nashiji gold flakes.

Meiji Period (1868 - 1912)

Size: 8.5" L x 6.75" D x 4" H

A rare large wooden shrine dating from the late 19th or early 20th century (Meiji/Taisho period) covered in black and red lacquer with gold highlights featuring 12 fully carved wooden panels. Over the gold columns is a lovely carving of 2 dragons vying for possession of a flaming pearl; with clouds, cranes and angels carved around them. Below are panels with tempestuous seas inset into the base...

A rare small sized circular Hokai container with chased brass hardware decorated on the lid with a six layer 16 petal chrysanthemum, the floral symbol of the Imperial Household. The container is made of wood covered with black lacquer decorated with gold powder hira-maki-e with brass hardware. Hokai were a standard accoutrements to any household of means, however this size is quite rare. It is not the miniature version from a doll set...

Antique Japanese pair of rare black lacquer dowery tansu for clothing. These fine lacquer cabinets would have held folded clothing and been carried to a brides home containing her dowery of fine textiles. Hinged doors open to reveal 4 shelves inside. Hardware includes 5 hinges on each door, corner bracing, handles for carrying by hand and by pole, and large lock plates all of which are incised with scrolling floral details and made of bronze...

Antique Japanese black lacquered cha tansu (tea display cabinet) with fabulous, intricate inlay designs of temple scenes, peacocks, and floral motifs. From the southernmost Japanese island known as Ryukyu.

Meiji period (1868-1912)

Size: 31.75" L x 12.5" W x 34.5" H

An antique Japanese rare 2 section Butsudan (Buddhist Altar) hand made with elaborate Makie lacquerwork. Upper section has two large hinged doors decorated with a blooming Peony tree. The interior of the doors each feature a Buddhist diety, one holding a mushroom scepter with a Baku at his feet and the other studying a horizontal scroll with a Shishi (Foo dog) at his feet. Below the doors are three small drawers where Buddhist accoutrements were stored...

This is one of the more intriguing lacquer objects we have owned. Adorned with maki-e Aoe (hollyhock) Ka-mon on nashiji ground (also known as the Kamo Aoi as it was sacred to the Kamo shrine), family crest for prominent daimyo families including the Tokugawa and the Matsudaira during the Momoyama and Edo periods. Even the drawer pull is fashioned as an open worked shibuichi Aoe Ka-mon with the surprise of a textured, kinko (soft metal) raised backing only if you look for it...

Antique Japanese pair of hardwood hibachi lamps, adorned with beautiful motifs of grape leaves in gilt makie lacquer and inlay. Bold natural keyaki hardwood woodgrain. Meiji age (1868-1912)

Size: 13" W x 28" H

LACQUERER'S WHEEL

Wheel for lacquering used by Japanese lacquer craftsman as a handmade professional tool made of wood, iron, and *cloth (*coating the top plate, though looks like wood), from Aizu area, Showa period, mid 20th century, approx...

An elaborately decorated lacquered sword stand. The stand is made into a small chest with three drawers. The chest is decorated with motifs of plums, a phoenix, and a Chinese style landscape with inlaid embellishments. The interior of the drawers is done in nashiji or pear skin makie. Age: 18th/19th century. Size: length: 19.75" width: 9.5" height 20"

A large wood tray in red and black urushi (lacquer ware). Generally in good condition, but minor hairline in the surface and some parts where urushi came off and wear in the back. 20th century. Diameter:40cm, H:4cm

Japanese black lacquer standing screen, decorated with a painting of a hawk in a pine tree on one side and a group of blossoming peonies on the other. Beautiful detail. Painted in mineral colors and sumi ink on paper and signed by the artist. Taisho Period. Total size: 51 1/4" high x 45 1/2" wide x 19" deep.

Antique Japanese lacquer stand with intricate mother-of-pearl inlay and painted details. The top depicts a dragon floating in swirling clouds. Each cloud is a fine dusting of different colors of shell inlay. The base is decorated with a tiger near a rocky waterfall. The stand has two arching legs which end in shoulders and apron with reserves depicting kirin, a phoenix and chimera...

Japanese Meiji period rectangular form wood three-drawer tabako-bon smoker’s hibachi decorated in gold with the “three friends of the garden” (pine, prunus, and bamboo) on a black lacquered ground. A recessed square brazier with a domed metal pierced lid and a smaller rectangular lidded ash container are on top. Hinged metal carrying handle. Both the front and back have shaped pipe holders. A drawer filled with assorted kiseru is included. 19th century...

Dramatic and large Japanese antique shodana display tansu, lacquered all over with beautiful scenes of birds, flowers, butterflies, and fans, inlaid scenes of flowers and butterflies and a scroll of a figure by a waterfall, 3 sections, Meiji Period. Size: 87 1/2" high x 50 1/2" wide x 20" deep.

Very beautiful Japanese table with four legs in gold, black and brown lacquer with two richly decorated tops. The upper tray presents a decoration of bats, kumori (蝙蝠), in flight in gold hiramaki-e lacquer on a brown lacquer background. The openwork side panels feature the same motif. The lower tray and the legs display a decoration of moving or lying sika deer (鹿), also in hiramaki-e gold lacquer on a black lacquer background.

This small piece of fur...