Japanese cloisonné enamel jar with cover signed Namikawa Yasuyuki Meiji period

Japanese cloisonné enamel jar and domed cover decorated with three panels depicting butterflies in flight among blooming hibiscus and chrysanthemums. The designs worked in fine gold wire on a soft pale yellow ground. The panels are framed by a deep brown ground adorned with stylised floral and geometric motifs in vibrant green, blue, and gold.

The shoulder and foot are encircled with bands of formal foliate design, while the neck is bordered by delicate tight whirls. The jar applied with a gilt rim and foot, and the domed lid is topped with a gold chrysanthemum (kiku) finial signed on a silver tablet Kyoto Namikawa 京都 並河 (workshop of Namikawa Yasuyuki) late Meiji period (1868-1912).

Namikawa Yasuyuki 並河靖之(1845-1927) was one of the most celebrated cloisonné artist of the Meiji era. Establishing his Kyoto studio in 1873, Namikawa rose to prominence by the 1880s with a team of skilled artisans and a dedicated showroom for private clients. His exceptional craftsmanship earned him numerous accolades, including eleven awards at international expositions between 1876 and 1904. In 1896, he was appointed Teishitsu Gigeiin (Artist-Craftsman to the Imperial Household), one of the highest honours for an artist of the period.

Reference: Frederic T. Schneider, ‘The Art of Japanese Cloisonné Enamel: History, Techniques and Artists, 1600 to the Present’, Jefferson, NC, McFarland, 2010, pg. 251 no. 138.

‘Meiji no Takara 明治の宝 Treasures of Imperial Japan, the Nasser D. Khalili Collection’, the Kibo Foundation 1995, Enamel Vol. III, no. 6.

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