Page 317 - Japanese marks and seals on pottery, paper and other objects.
P. 317
LACQUER, ENAMELS, METAL, WOOD, IVORY, ETC. 279
It was very customary for the makers of mirrors in
olden times to assume the family name of one of the
distinguished families of the nobility of Japan, which they
used in conjunction with their own name in the inscriptions
which are generally cast upon mirrors. The two upper
characters in the example given below are Fujiwara, and
the two lower ones are Mitsushige, the former being the
assumed, and the latter the real, name of the maker.
/U
t
The conceit of mirror makers carried them even further
than this, for the characters Tenka ichi, meaning the first
man in the world, frequently form part of their inscriptions,
and carvers in wood occasionally use the same expression.
Mirror. IVood Cart>ing. Mir?'or.
TENKA ICHI.
The first man in the world.
Mirror.
TENKA ICHI NO SAKU.
The mannfactiire of the first 7?ian hi the luorld.
The character On, a word signifying respect or honour,
is applied in various ways an artist may use it as a
;
prefix to show that he is in the service of a prince, or
when an object is intended for presentation to a noble, or
