Page 50 - Bonhams Royal Collection Fine Japanese Art London Nov. 2019

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SHIBATA ZESHIN 柴田是真 (1807–1891)
ZANSAISAGE OR TONKOTSU (CONTAINER FOR FOOD
SCRAPS) WITH DESIGN OF THE MOON AND MARE’S-TAIL
月に杉菜図蒔絵残菜提
Meiji era (1868–1912), circa 1870–1890

With tapering sides, rounded corners, and fitted lid, the wood body in Exhibited and Published:
dark green-brown seidō-nuri and with a design of the full moon with Nezu Bijutsukan (Nezu Museum) 2012, cat. no. 32
seed-heads and stalks of sugina (mare’s-tail), the moon in shibuichi-
nuri on the lid and one side, the sugina in takamaki-e with kirigane and £20,000 - 30,000
shell, some details carved and scratched, the top edge of the box JPY2,600,000 - 3,900,000
with a key-fret pattern in silver togidashi maki-e imitating silver inlay US$24,000 - 36,000
in bronze; signed in scratched characters on the underside of the lid
Zeshin 是真
This type of box was probably intended for use during an outdoor
9.2cm × 11.9cm × 6.9cm (3⅝in × 4⅝in × 2¾in) tea ceremony in late spring or early summer, perhaps in conjunction
with a larger tea-utensil box of the same form. The Khalili Collection
With fitted wood storage box inscribed Onzansage 御残提 (Container includes such a box, decorated like this one with Zeshin’s favourite
for food scraps) and an open-weave silk storage bag (4) spring plants; a second box, in a different shape, has the same
dramatic moon design (Earle and Gōke 1996, cat. nos. 9–10). The
Provenance: fertile sugina heads are variously either lacquered in takamaki-e with
Misumi Hisashi Collection a stylized hexagonal ground or carved and scratched to produce a
三隅悠 旧蔵 more painterly, naturalistic effect, a contrast characteristically reflecting
Sold in these Rooms, 5 November 2014, lot 5 Zeshin’s dual background as both painter and lacquerer. Capturing an
exact moment in the year, the group of plants is shown at the stage
Exhibited: when sterile stalks, intact fertile heads, and fertile heads beginning
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, 2017–2018 to release their seeds all occur simultaneously. The lustrous green-
brown ground is an outstanding example of Zeshin’s meticulous
craftsmanship.

For details of the charges payable in addition to the final Hammer Price of each Lot
48 | BONHAMS please refer to paragraphs 7 & 8 of the Notice to Bidders at the back of the catalogue.