As part of our Japanese works of art collection we are delighted to offer this incredibly scarce Meiji period (1868-1912) silver and mixed metal vase, produced at the Kiritsu Kosho Kaisha almost certainly under the directorship of lead artist Suzuki Chokichi (1848-1919) his art name Kako. The main body of this large and heavy silver vase is predominantly decorated with sprigs of bamboo formed from alloys including shibuichi, shakudo, copper and gold, nothing too unusual there, however the shoulders give rise to a more complex use of alloys and a style more typical of Kako’s extravagant designs, a striking and quite radical angular alloy is overlaid onto the silver body, this unique olive green textured alloy has been painstakingly etched back to reveal a very fine cobweb in low relief. This most unusual decoration is adorned with an array of spectacular quality mixed metal insects to include moths, spiders, dragonfly, praying mantis and locust to name a few, each insect manufactured from alloys including gold, silver, shibuichi and shakudo, a most dramatic and quite remarkable display of craftsmanship that seemingly Chokichi would have produced during his tenure as lead artist at the government owned and sponsored Kiritsu Kosho Kaisha, during the mid Meiji period , certainly prior to 1891 and the cessation of the company, the underside of the vase is signed Kiritsu Kosha Kaisha Sei under the trademark double mountain mark and is most unusually accompanied by a further silver mark “tsuka gin”, see literature below.
Literature :
The most unusual accompanying silver mark “Tsuka gin” literally denotes silver used or issued by the government mint, which of course would tie in with the government owned Kiritsu Kosho Kaisha who would presumably have had direct access to resources at the mint. The new Meiji period coinage was first produced at the opening of the mint in Osaka in 1871 using western techniques never before seen in Japan. At this time only Yen coinage was produced with no banknotes in production, “Yen” literally meaning small round object, it is recorded that the mint also produced medals of honour and rather interestingly, silver artworks. Although it is evident that our silver vase was produced by the Kiritsu Kosho Kaisha, there was clearly some sort of collaboration with the Imperial Mint at Osaka, we may never know the exact involvement of the mint other than to perhaps provide the uncirculated silver to promote the manufacture of such lavish objects as this example.
During the mid-1870’s, production of silver Yen was stalled at the mint, the reason was to produce new coinage containing a percentage of gold in order to align trade with the fast emerging US and south American markets, both of which used gold coinage at that time. This hiatus created a surplus of uncirculated silver Yen that we may presume were smelted for other manufacturing uses.
Despite extensive ongoing research and decades of handling and viewing all manner of pieces produced by Chokichi and the Kiritsu Kosho Kaisha company, I cannot trace any other metalwork object manufactured predominantly with the use of silver and certainly not with the use of the Imperial mint silver mark. I must therefore conclude this vase to be a very rare and important example from the mid Meiji period of manufacture.
Provenance :
USA Collection
Condition report :
Fine condition.
Approximate Sizes :
Height : 14 1/8″ 36 cm
Diameter : 7″ 18 cm
Weight : 127 oz 3,970 gms
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