Japanese cloisonné enamel vase signed Sanzui Taishō period

Japanese cloisonné enamel vase of baluster form, finely worked in silver wire and decorated with Manchurian cranes standing upon a rocky shoreline amid crashing waves, set against a soft light-purple ground and applied silver mounts. The base bears the silver yūsen mark of Sanzui 水, Taishō period (1912–1926).

Among the most revered motifs in Japanese art is the red-crowned crane (tancho-zuru 丹頂鶴), a tall and graceful bird rich in symbolic meaning. In Japanese tradition, the crane embodies auspicious emblem of longevity, with folklore attributing to it a thousand-year lifespan, as well as good fortune and marital fidelity, owing to its lifelong mating bond. For these reasons, cranes were a favoured subject in the decorative arts and often appeared on temple walls and within traditional Japanese interiors. This potent symbol also resonated with the aesthetics of the Art Nouveau movement, which embraced the crane both for its elegant form and its profound cultural significance.

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