Japanese Fireman s Coat Hikeshi-Banten Showa Period

A well-preserved Japanese fireman's hood (known as hikeshi zukin in Japanese) circa 1900s, late Meiji period. Woven with thick cotton with sashiko (co...

A spectacular Japanese embroidered silk panel beautifully presented in a gilt frame suspended in a lucite shadow box with gilt wood border. The silk picture is dated to 1890-1910s toward the end of Meiji Period, when Japanese started to participate international expose by presenting its best art and craft. Elaborate embroidered silk tapestry like this was very popular among westerners due to its superb craftmanship and also exotic subject matter that was often derived from classic Japanese folklore, mythology and various motifs. The tapestry on offer is such an example. It depicts an old couple...

A Japanese silk Fukusa panel circa late 19th-early 20th century of Meiji Period. The front was beautifully decorated with Yuzen-zome, a labor intensive resist-dye technique invested ...

A Japanese silk Fukusa panel circa late 19th-early 20th century of Meiji Period. The front was beautifully decorated with Yuzen-zome, a labor intensive resist-dye technique invested by an artist monk Miyazaki Yuzensai (1654 -1736) of Edo period. The auspicious composition features a group of red-crown cranes, the symbol of longevity. Three of them perch on the rock by the ocean (East Sea) an two of them are in flight. Additionally, two egrets frolic in the wave. Yuzen dying was used extensively to showcase the amazing details such as the waves and the gradual coloring effect. Embroidery was used sparsely to highlight areas such as the legs of the crane to render it more dimensional details. The piece has a red silk backing and still retains four blue tassels on corners as well as decorative stitches along the edges. Fukusa is a traditional Japanese textile...