Set of Inkstone Boxes and Qiangjin Case

Object Details

• Previous custodian or owner

  Dr. Arthur M. Sackler (1913-1987)

  Sammy Yu Kuan Lee 李汝寬

  Oriental House LTD

  Sir John Figgess

• Provenance

  16th century

  Possibly for high-ranking members of Mongol ruling family [1]

  By 1967-?

  Sir John Figgess (1909-1997), method of acquisition unknown [2]

  By 1968-1972

  Oriental House, Ltd., Tokyo, Japan, acquired in Japan, method of acquisition unknown [3]

  1972-1987

  Arthur M. Sackler (1913-1987), purchased from Oriental House, Ltd. [4]

  From 1987

  Arthur M. Sackler Gallery, Gift of Arthur M. Sackler [5]

  Notes:

  [1] See Lee Yu-Kuan's comments in Lee Yu-kuan, "Oriental Lacquer Art" [book] (New York: Weatherhill, 1968), 140. See also note 2.

  [2]Sir John Figgess was a British diplomat stationed in Tokyo who developed a robust collection of Japanese decorative arts. From 1968-1970 he served as the Commissioner General for Britain at the World Exposition, Osaka and later became the president of the Oriental Ceramic Society. See "Bi no Bi Ten ???? (dai 6-kai,1967)" [exhibition catalogue] (Tokyo: Nihon Keizai Shinbunsha ???????, 1967).

  [3] Oriental House Limited was a business located in Tokyo, Japan that was jointly operated by Sammy Yu-kuan Lee (1902-2011) and David Techun Wang (1905-2005). It is unclear if they jointly owned the company, but their joint ownership of Sammy Y. Lee & Wangs Company, Ltd. in Hong Kong is well established. While Oriental House Limited typically specialized in the sale of Chinese home goods, it occasionally sold antiquities as well. The Hong Kong business specialized in the sale of Chinese antiquities and the production of furniture. When Arthur M. Sackler purchased this object (see note 3), he issued payment to "Oriental House, Ltd. Sammy Lee or David Te-chun Wang," see record of payment, "Lacquerware Collection Associated Accession Numbers -- Purchased from the Oriental House, Ltd."

  [4] See "Agreement" signed by Sammy Yu Kuan Lee on July 17, 1972, and Arthur M. Sackler on September 28, 1972, copy in object file. The document notes that Lee agreed to sell Sacker 100 lacquer objects and that Sackler will pay for the collection in one hundred installments, beginning on August 1, 1972. The document also notes: "The objects are now stored or [are] being exhibited in different countries such as Japan, Hong Kong, France, Germany, and United Kingdom. Mr. Lee or his representative will deliver too Dr. Sackler or his representative the objects as soon as possible within the payment period. The first payment was issued on September 28, 1972, and the last on November 21, 1979.

  [5] Pursuant to the agreement between Arthur M. Sackler and the Smithsonian Institution, dated July 28, 1982, legal title of the donated objects was transferred to the Arthur M. Sackler Gallery on September 11, 1987.

  Research completed November 17, 2022.

• Origin

  Okinawa prefecture, Japan

• Credit Line

  Gift of Arthur M. Sackler

• 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.

  The information presented on this website may be revised and updated at any time as ongoing research progresses or as otherwise warranted. Pending any such revisions and updates, information on this site may be incomplete or inaccurate or may contain typographical errors. Neither the Smithsonian nor its regents, officers, employees, or agents make any representations about the accuracy, reliability, completeness, or timeliness of the information on the site. Use this site and the information provided on it subject to your own judgment. The National Museum of Asian Art welcomes information that would augment or clarify the ownership history of objects in their collections.

Keep Exploring

• Related Resources

  collections.si.edu

• Date

  1590s, 1500s

• Name

  Sackler, Arthur M., Lee, Sammy Yu Kuan, Figgess, John, Oriental House LTD

• Place

  Japan, Okinawa prefecture

• Topic

  Art, Japanese Art

• Culture

  Japanese

• Object Type

  Containers