A FINE GOLD-LACQUERED WRITING-BOX AND A BOX FOR WRITING-PAPER
A FINE GOLD-LACQUERED WRITING-BOX AND A BOX FOR WRITING-PAPER

EDO PERIOD (19TH CENTURY)

Details
A FINE GOLD-LACQUERED WRITING-BOX AND A BOX FOR WRITING-PAPER
Edo Period (19th Century)
Two-tiered with the writing box above the box for writing-paper, decorated in gold and silver hiramaki-e, gold flakes, silver and shell inlay on a nashiji ground, with the Yatsuhashi [eightfold bridge] among iris, arrowhead plants and butterflies, the interior in nashiji with ink-stone and a circular water-dropper embossed with arabesque design, both fitted into a removable tray, silver rings fitted to each side for the cord
4.7/8 x 3 x 5.5/8in. (12.3 x 8.3 x 14.4cm.)

Lot Essay

The Yatsuhashi bridge is a scenic place celebrated in the Tales of Ise. After the exile from court, the poet Narihira visits an eight-fold bridge across an iris pond, where he conposes a poem using the syllables of the word kakitsubata [iris] for the begining of each line.

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