Antique Japanese Manju Netsuke
Guri-bori Red & Black Tsuishu Lacquer Japan
For sale on eBay:
www.ebay.com/usr/xcoasterxtreme
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Type: Manju Netsuke
Material: Red & Black Tsuishu Carved Guri-bori Lacquer
Age: Edo Period (1603-1868) or Meiji Period (1868-1912)
Origin/Maker: Japan
Size: 1 11/16" (4.28625 cm) diameter, 11/16" (1.74625 cm) thick
Weight: 0.6 oz (17 g)
Provenance:
Present: Ryan Snooks collection of Japanese & Asian Decorative Art
Previous: Private Collection
Collected: Seller from Ibaraki, Japan, 15 FEB 2018.
Condition: Item is used in good condition commensurate with age, see photos. With small chip to lacquer on reverse, and several tiny dents on front.
Subject: Rare Manju netsuke made of alternating layers of red and black tsuishu lacquer, carved to show the alternating layers, called Guri-bori, (Tixi lacquer in China). Reminisicient of Negoro lacquer, which also has red and black layers of lacquer (but generally without the lacquer itself being carved away). With a metal cord loop (himotoshi).
A history of Guri-bori, from www.mokumegane.org/e/guribori.html :
The technique of applying the sap of the Japanese sumac tree to utensils is known as lacquering. Guri is one of the ancient lacquer techniques of China. Nowadays, most people are familiar with the likes of Wajima lacquer or Tsugaru lacquer, with tableware or gold makie works of art. Coating wooden utensils with lacquer makes them resistant and long-lasting. In ancient China, it was common to coat multiple layers of lacquer onto wooden items to achieve considerable thickness, and then carve this into three-dimensional patterns. These swirling patterns that looked like continuous warabi bracken were called guri.
The arabesque patterns which had spread around the world since ancient times were further refined with abstract heart or swirl patterns appearing. Through the Kamakura and Muromachi periods, this Chinese lacquer came to Japan at the same time as Zen Buddhism, and was prized for use in tea utensils or incense containers. In Japan, the swirl patterns were called “kurikuri” which is how it came to be known as guri. The sound came to depict the pattern.
Subsequently, this was imitated in Japan to carve designs on wood and apply lacquer to make Buddhist altar objects, becoming the origin of Kamakura-bori. There are masterpieces among Japanese made lacquer inro from the latter part of the Edo period believed to be of similar origin, showing us that such patterns circulated widely at the time.
And going further back in China, it is said that the technique known as ”Saihi” which was mostly seen during the Southern Song dynasty is at the origin of guri. In this, yellow and orange coatings were applied alternately, with the final surface layer being black, and, as geometrical patterns were carved out, delicate layers of colored lacquer became visible. There are only a very few pieces still in existence. Both the Tokyo National Museum and the University Art Museum of the Tokyo University of the Arts have several pieces in their collections.
Location:
Antique Japanese Manju Netsuke Guri-bori Red & Black Tsuishu Lacquer Japan
www.ebay.com/usr/xcoasterxtreme
See also:
Type: Manju Netsuke
Material: Red & Black Tsuishu Carved Guri-bori Lacquer
Age: Edo Period (1603-1868) or Meiji Period (1868-1912)
Origin/Maker: Japan
Size: 1 11/16" (4.28625 cm) diameter, 11/16" (1.74625 cm) thick
Weight: 0.6 oz (17 g)
Provenance:
Present: Ryan Snooks collection of Japanese & Asian Decorative Art
Previous: Private Collection
Collected: Seller from Ibaraki, Japan, 15 FEB 2018.
Condition: Item is used in good condition commensurate with age, see photos. With small chip to lacquer on reverse, and several tiny dents on front.
Subject: Rare Manju netsuke made of alternating layers of red and black tsuishu lacquer, carved to show the alternating layers, called Guri-bori, (Tixi lacquer in China). Reminisicient of Negoro lacquer, which also has red and black layers of lacquer (but generally without the lacquer itself being carved away). With a metal cord loop (himotoshi).
A history of Guri-bori, from www.mokumegane.org/e/guribori.html :
The technique of applying the sap of the Japanese sumac tree to utensils is known as lacquering. Guri is one of the ancient lacquer techniques of China. Nowadays, most people are familiar with the likes of Wajima lacquer or Tsugaru lacquer, with tableware or gold makie works of art. Coating wooden utensils with lacquer makes them resistant and long-lasting. In ancient China, it was common to coat multiple layers of lacquer onto wooden items to achieve considerable thickness, and then carve this into three-dimensional patterns. These swirling patterns that looked like continuous warabi bracken were called guri.
The arabesque patterns which had spread around the world since ancient times were further refined with abstract heart or swirl patterns appearing. Through the Kamakura and Muromachi periods, this Chinese lacquer came to Japan at the same time as Zen Buddhism, and was prized for use in tea utensils or incense containers. In Japan, the swirl patterns were called “kurikuri” which is how it came to be known as guri. The sound came to depict the pattern.
Subsequently, this was imitated in Japan to carve designs on wood and apply lacquer to make Buddhist altar objects, becoming the origin of Kamakura-bori. There are masterpieces among Japanese made lacquer inro from the latter part of the Edo period believed to be of similar origin, showing us that such patterns circulated widely at the time.
And going further back in China, it is said that the technique known as ”Saihi” which was mostly seen during the Southern Song dynasty is at the origin of guri. In this, yellow and orange coatings were applied alternately, with the final surface layer being black, and, as geometrical patterns were carved out, delicate layers of colored lacquer became visible. There are only a very few pieces still in existence. Both the Tokyo National Museum and the University Art Museum of the Tokyo University of the Arts have several pieces in their collections.
Location:
Antique Japanese Manju Netsuke Guri-bori Red & Black Tsuishu Lacquer Japan
