{"product_id":"suzuribako-a-decor-de-horagai-et-paysage-de-pavillons-epoque-edo-xviiie-debut-xixe-siecle","title":"Suzuribako with horagai and pavilion landscape design, Edo period, 18th-early 19th century","description":"\u003ch2\u003eSuzuribako with Horagai and Pavilion Landscape Decoration\u003c\/h2\u003e\u003cp\u003eJapan, Edo period, 18th-early 19th century\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRectangular suzuribako with rounded corners, made of lacquered wood, measuring 24.1 cm in width, 22.2 cm in height, and 4.7 cm in depth. The lid features a large \u003cem\u003ehoragai\u003c\/em\u003e 法螺貝, a conch shell transformed into a trumpet, wrapped in a net rendered in raised red lacquer, against a \u003cem\u003enashiji\u003c\/em\u003e background. The interior contains an inkstone and a water dropper, or \u003cem\u003esuiteki\u003c\/em\u003e, here in the shape of a pine branch, while the reverse of the lid is adorned with a landscape of pavilions by the water. The \u003cem\u003esuzuribako\u003c\/em\u003e is a writing box designed to hold the instruments necessary for preparing ink and writing.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe \u003cem\u003enashiji\u003c\/em\u003e background should be highlighted from the outset. This technique, which gives the surface the appearance of a pear skin through the dense scattering of fine gold flakes, here creates a luminous, warm, and very regular field, against which the motif stands out with great clarity. The decoration of the lid visibly combines \u003cem\u003ehiramaki-e\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003etakamaki-e\u003c\/em\u003e. \u003cem\u003eHiramaki-e\u003c\/em\u003e corresponds to the thinly drawn parts, integrated into the surface, while \u003cem\u003etakamaki-e\u003c\/em\u003e refers to the more pronounced reliefs, achieved by modeling before sprinkling with gold. The dialogue between these two processes gives the motif its depth without breaking the smooth and precious unity of the lacquer.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe \u003cem\u003ehoragai\u003c\/em\u003e is a well-identified instrument in Japanese culture, mainly associated with the \u003cem\u003eyamabushi\u003c\/em\u003e, mountain ascetics of \u003cem\u003eshugendō\u003c\/em\u003e. Japanese sources recall that it was used to communicate in the mountains, to mark a presence, to punctuate certain ritual practices, and that it was also attributed a protective function, capable of warding off evil forces. In the iconography of this box, its presence thus introduces a world of retreat, hermitage, life apart from the world, and mountain spirituality. The red net that carries it is not a secondary detail: it belongs to the very reality of the object, and its representation, of extreme precision, is one of the greatest achievements of the box. Each strand of the braiding is followed, crossed, and tightened with exceptional meticulousness, which gives the decoration an almost tactile truth.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe interior develops another, more literary, register. The reverse of the lid is adorned with a landscape of pavilions by the water, with pines, reliefs, and birds in flight. The bottom reiterates this atmosphere with gold lacquer branches. We are here in the vocabulary of the ideal, secluded, contemplative landscape, constructed around water, light architecture, and the pine, a tree of permanence and steadfastness. The pine branch-shaped \u003cem\u003esuiteki\u003c\/em\u003e directly extends this decoration and shows that the accessories themselves participate in the iconographic program. Thus, the decoration of the box is organized in a true dialogue between the world of mountain asceticism evoked by the \u003cem\u003ehoragai\u003c\/em\u003e and that of writing, mental landscape, and cultivated retreat.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIt is this dialogue that makes the particular intelligence of the work. On the exterior, the large \u003cem\u003ehoragai\u003c\/em\u003e dominates alone, almost monumental, with its raised red net, in a strong, concentrated, almost emblematic image. Inside, the gaze enters a quieter, ampler space, made of water, pavilions, pines, and birds. The passage from the lid to the inside of the box thus corresponds to a symbolic passage: from the signal, the call, and the mountainous world to the space of the literati, of writing, and of contemplation. Such iconographic coherence, served by such precise execution, places this piece among suzuribako of excellent quality.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 24.1 × 22.2 × 4.7 cm.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Sinapango ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":53998016758106,"sku":null,"price":6300.0,"currency_code":"EUR","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0957\/8568\/1242\/files\/9E02A717-9C6C-44BA-BF5B-246569EE020D.jpg?v=1776178725","url":"https:\/\/sinapango.com\/en\/products\/suzuribako-a-decor-de-horagai-et-paysage-de-pavillons-epoque-edo-xviiie-debut-xixe-siecle","provider":"Sinapango ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}