Pair of Incense Boxes (Kōgō) in the Shape of Mandarin Ducks

second half of the 19th century

Not on view

The Altman bequest to The Met included fifty Japanese lacquers, featuring a group of small decorative incense boxes. Such objects were popular collectibles in Europe during the second half of the nineteenth century, following the eighteenth-century fashion of collecting small maki-e objects as part of aristocratic interior decoration. In East Asia mandarin ducks represent marital bliss and fidelity; they are often depicted on ceramics, lacquers, and textiles as auspicious symbols associated with weddings.

Artwork Details

Overview

Provenance

Exhibition History

鴛鴦形蒔絵香合
Title: Pair of Incense Boxes (Kōgō) in the Shape of Mandarin Ducks
Period: Meiji period (1868–1912)
Date: second half of the 19th century
Culture: Japan
Medium: Lacquered wood with gold and silver takamaki-e, hiramaki-e, and togidashimaki-e, cutout gold foil application
Dimensions: H. (with tray) 5 in. (12.7 cm); W. 5 in. (15.2 cm); L. 6 in. (12.7 cm)
Classification: Lacquer
Credit Line: Bequest of Benjamin Altman, 1913
Object Number: 14.40.820a–e
Curatorial Department: Asian Art

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