Inkstone box, with scene from The Tale of Genji, Chapter 10

Object Details

• Description

  This lacquer box depicts in gold and silver maki-e a solitary noble person's carriage in a deserted autumn field. The interior of the lid and base continue the theme of solitude associated with autumn, with a scene of pine trees along a shoreline with a silver crescent moon above. The box contains an inkstone and water-dropper in the form of a boat with waves lapping up the sides.

• Label

  A profound sense of isolation pervades the scene of a nobleman's carriage resting in a field of grass. This scene and the interior motifs of a shoreline come from an episode in The Tale of Genji. Thick foils of gold and silver accentuate the gold and silver powders used in this design. An inkstone, trays for brushes and inksticks, and a water-dropper in the form of a boat are fitted inside the box.

• Provenance

  T. B. Kitson [1]

  Charles A. Greenfield, New York acquired from T.B. Kitson [2]

  To 1991

  Eskenazi Ltd., London, to 1991

  From 1991

  Freer Gallery of Art, purchased from Eskenazi Ltd., London in 1991

  Notes:

  [1] According to Curatorial Note 4, Ann Yonemura, December 24, 1991, in object record

  [2] See note 1.

• Collection

  Freer Gallery of Art Collection

• Exhibition History

  Painting the Classics: Presence and Absence (November 3, 2018 to October 14, 2019)

  Moonlight and Clouds: Silver and Gold in the Arts of Japan (November 11, 2008 to November 11, 2009)

  Tales and Legends in Japanese Art (June 21, 2003 to January 4, 2004)

  Japanese Art in the Age of Koetsu (June 6, 1998 to February 15, 1999)

  Japanese Art (May 9, 1993 to June 27, 1994)

  Japanese Lacquer, 1600-1900: Selections from the Charles A. Greenfield Collection (September 4 - October 19, 1980)

  The Magnificent Three: Lacquer, Netsuke and Tsuba (1972)

• Previous custodian or owner

  T. B. Kitson

  Charles A. Greenfield

  Eskenazi Ltd. (Founded 1923)

• Origin

  Japan

• Credit Line

  Purchase — funds provided by the bequest of Edith Ehrman

• Type

  Container

• Restrictions and Rights

  Usage Conditions Apply

  There are restrictions for re-using this media. For more information, visit the Smithsonian's Terms of Use page.

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• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1700s, 1710s, 1720s, 1770s, 1780s, 1790s, 1730s, 1740s, 1750s, 1760s, 1800s, 1810s, 1820s, 1830s, 1610s, 1600s, 1650s, 1640s, 1630s, 1620s, 1690s, 1840s, 1680s, 1850s, 1670s, 1860s, 1660s

• Name

  Greenfield, Charles A., Kitson, T. B., Eskenazi Ltd.

• Place

  Japan

• Topic

  Pine tree, Boats and boating, Art, Inlay (process), Autumn, Maki-e, Edo period, Japan, (1600 - 1868), Japanese Art, Lacquer, The Tale of Genji, Carriage

• Culture

  Japanese

• Object Type

  Containers