Page 11 - Christie's The Joseph Collection of Japanese Art

GLOSSARY OF TERMS

chawan tea-bowl, especially one used in the tea ceremony
chidori conventionally translated ‘wave-bird’; a small shore-bird with an irregular, zig-zag fight
chinkinbori technique of incising lines in lacquer and then flling them with gold or silver foil
fubako document box, usually of elongated rectangular shape
fundame matt gold lacquer ground
gyobu-nashiji lacquer ground of relatively large irregularly shaped fakes of gold or silver sprinkled and
suspended in clear or yellowish lacquer
haboki feather brush used during the incense ceremony
hagi bush clover, Lespedeza bicolor
hiramaki-e basic lacquering technique in which metal powders are sprinkled onto wet lacquer and then
covered with a further layer of transparent lacquer, i.e. low relief lacquer
hirame fat gold and silver fakes used in lacquer decoration
iro-e generic term for chiselled relief decoration in gold, silver and copper alloys
karako small Chinese boy often seen in Edo-period decorative art
kinpun gold powder
kirikane geometrically cut out pieces of gold and silver
kobako small box or, with a long ‘o’, incense box
kogo small box for incense wood
maki-e generic term for lacquer decoration using powdered metals; see also hiramaki-e and takamaki-e
minogame a turtle or tortoise which has acquired a long ‘tail’ of weed by living for a long time in a pond;
emblematic of long life
mitsudomoe an interlocking three-comma motif used in mon
mokume simulating wood grain
mon family crest
mura-nashiji sparse nashiji or nashiji sprinkled in patches
nashiji very small, irregularly shaped fakes of gold or silver sprinkled and suspended in clear or
yellowish lacquer
roironuri polished black lacquer
shakudo blue black patinated alloy of copper with a small quantity of gold
shinobu hare’s-foot fern, Davallia mariesii
suzuribako formal box for writing utensils
takamaki-e lacquering technique in which the design is built up in high relief either by repeated
applications or by adding powdered charcoal or clay to the lacquer
tebako literally ‘hand box’ or ‘handy box’, a term often used loosely to describe cosmetic and
accessory box
togidashi lacquer technique in which the design is covered with several layers of lacquer; when these
layers of lacquer are polished away the design reappears, fush with the new ground
torii entrance arch to a Shinto shrine
tsuishu the thick layers of red lacquer carved in high and low relief
uchiwa rigid, as opposed to folding, fan

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