A Meiji Period Maki-e Hand Painted Five-tiered Jubako Set
- Artist:
- —
- Era:
- Meiji
- Price:
- $3,000
- Inquire:
- Contact gallery
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Japanese Jubako—traditional stacked lacquerware food boxes—represent not only a high level of culinary refinement, but also demonstrate the importance the Japanese place on food culture in general. These elegantly tiered containers, often adorned with intricate designs and vibrant colors, are integral to the presentation of meals on special occasions such as New Year’s celebrations and formal picnics. Crafted with meticulous attention to detail, Jubako boxes like those featured here showcase the artistry of Japanese lacquerware artisans, who meticulously apply layers of lacquer and delicate decorations like maki-e (gold lacquer design). With each layer of lacquer applied an artwork like this must be carefully dried before the next layer can be added. As you may imagine this can take many months and sometimes over a year for the completion of just one artwork. As symbols of hospitality and abundance, Jubako boxes carry cultural significance, embodying the spirit of sharing and celebration that defines Japanese culinary traditions.
As you can see from the images, this particular Jubako is especially lovely and exceptionally eye-catching. Dating from the Meiji period when production of such pieces enjoyed a hey-day, the balance of color, texture, theme, and attention to detail is really striking. Though Jubako from this period are not necessarily rare, it can be a considerable challenge to find pieces that display this much artistry. Being antique and likely seeing well over 100 years of use on special occasions there are several small chips and scratches but overall the piece is in exceptionally good condition. In fact, the mother-of-pearl which often tends to be damaged over time is completely intact in this piece. The lacquer stand measures 35.7cm on each side and stands 10cm tall while the individual boxes are 30.5cm on each side and about 9cm tall. The height of the entire set is 55cm and it comes with an antique wood box to house the stand and the stacked boxes separately.
*** International shipping and insurance is included in the price
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