Writing box (suzuribako)

Japan, second half of 19th century

Wood, natural lacquer decorated in fundame, nashiji, hiramaki-e, tsukegaki, raden and hyomon and inlaid with lead and pewter.

H: 9 cm / W: 23.7 cm / L: 26.3 cm

Markings: “Hokkyo Korin zo” signed on bottom of case

O 218

Purchased from H. Saenger, Hamburg.

This writing box (suzuribako) contains an ink stone (suzuri) and included an ink block, a water dropper, a set of brushes (often in their own lacquer cases), a knife, and a paper-pricker or smoother. On the lid is a flowering Japanese cherry tree, a man on horseback dressed in court attire from the Heian period (794–1185), and a calligraphic inscription of the beginning of a poem: “Will I see this again? On Katano Moor”. The

blooming sakura continues on the opposite side of the lid, as does the verse: “petals of snow scattering”. A cherry blossom is also inside the case, where the final line of the poem reads: “in the first faint light of dawn”. The painting has been executed in the style of the late Rimpa school and specifically the work of Ogata Korin (1658–1716).