A FINE LACQUER BOX AND COVER WITH INTERIOR TRAY AND TWO KOGO, FOR THE INCENSE MATCHING GAME

拍品描述

A FINE LACQUER BOX AND COVER WITH INTERIOR TRAY AND TWO KOGO, FOR THE INCENSE MATCHING GAME Japan, 19th century Of rectangular form, the exterior bearing a richly gold-sprinkled roiro ground, finely decorated in gold and silver hiramaki-e and takamaki-e with mura-nashiji and kirigane to depict chrysanthemums (kiku), the design elegantly continuing from the inrobuta (flush-fitting) lid onto the sides of the box. The interior, as well as the rims and underside, is finished in silver lacquer. The box contains a fitted tray decorated with a gold river stream strewn with petals on a silver ground, and two small kogo, their covers with circular panels enclosing peony and kuzu (arrowroot) blossoms respectively. SIZE 5.8 x 8 x 3.4 cm The present set was used for the incense-matching game. Like the Way of Tea and flower arrangement, the enjoyment of incense had developed into a complex pastime by the Edo period and had a large following during the seventeenth century. The various games involved guessing a fragrance from among more than 2,000 varieties, matching fragrances, and blending incenses to suggest certain moods. Auction result comparison: Compare a closely related lacquer box with interior tray and two smaller boxes, for the incense matching game, 3.6 x 8.3 x 5.9 cm, at Zacke, Fine Japanese Art, 16 June 2023, Vienna, lot 13 (sold for EUR 6,500).

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