Black Ikkan-bari Yoshinoyama Maki-e Tea Caddy by Nakamura Soetsu with Signed Box

Experience Authentic Japanese Lacquer Art with this Black Ikkan-bari Tea Caddy. This Japanese Usuchaki Caddy serves as a Nakamura Soetsu Lacquer and Yoshinoyama Maki-e masterpiece, featuring Gold Maki-e Lacquer artistry and Ikkan-bari Technique—a must-have for any Art Collector seeking Zen Tea Accessories and Japanese Lacquerware.

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🔹 [ BASIC DETAILS ]

• Artist: Nakamura Soetsu (中村宗悦)
• Technique: Ikkan-bari (layered paper lacquer) with gold maki-e
• Era: Contemporary (Heisei–Reiwa period)
• Origin: Japan
• Dimensions: Height approx. 7 cm (2.8 in), Width approx. 6.5 cm (2.6 in)
• Box: Signed tomobako with cloth wrapper (共箱共布)
• Condition: Excellent

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🔹 [ CULTURAL & ARTISTIC INSIGHT ]

Ikkan-bari is a distinctive Japanese lacquer technique in which layers of Japanese washi paper are molded and coated with multiple layers of lacquer, creating an object that is remarkably lightweight yet strong. Named after the Edo-period craftsman Hiki Ikkan, this technique has been treasured in tea ceremony for producing usuchaki (thin tea containers) that feel almost weightless in the hand—a quality that transforms the tactile experience of the tea gathering.

Nakamura Soetsu's interpretation combines the black ikkan-bari body, finished with a textured chirimen (crepe) surface, with exquisite gold maki-e depicting Yoshinoyama (Mt. Yoshino)—Japan's most celebrated site for cherry blossoms. The front features graceful warabi (bracken fiddlehead ferns) in gold, heralding spring's arrival, while the lid presents a mountain landscape dusted with scattered gold leaf representing cherry blossoms across distant hills.

*"A thousand cherry trees bloom on Yoshino—and here, on a surface no wider than a palm, the entire mountain exhales into gold."*

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🔹 [ DEEP-DIVE COMMENTARY ]

**The Ikkan-bari Legacy**: Hiki Ikkan, a craftsman of the early Edo period, developed this paper-lacquer technique that was quickly adopted by tea masters who valued its featherlight quality. The technique involves layering mulberry paper over a wooden mold, then applying numerous coats of lacquer. The resulting container is astonishingly light—a quality that speaks to the tea ceremony's reverence for subtlety in every sensory dimension.

**Yoshinoyama Imagery**: Mt. Yoshino in Nara Prefecture has been synonymous with cherry blossoms for over a millennium. With roughly 30,000 cherry trees planted across its slopes, it appears in countless poems, paintings, and lacquer designs. The gold maki-e rendering on this usuchaki captures both the warabi ferns of the forest floor and the misty mountain ridgelines, evoking the full sensory experience of a spring pilgrimage.

**Technical Mastery**: The chirimen (crepe) texture of the black lacquer body requires meticulous application—the lacquer must be worked while still tacky to create the characteristic wrinkled surface. Over this, the gold maki-e motifs are applied with the finest brushes, each fern frond drawn in a single confident stroke. The lid's mountain landscape employs togidashi maki-e, where gold powder is sprinkled, then polished back to reveal imagery that sits flush with the surface.

**Seasonal Use**: In tea practice, this usuchaki would be particularly appropriate for spring gatherings (spring-themed maki-e matches the season). The Yoshino cherry motif signals renewal and the fleeting beauty of blossoms—a meditation on impermanence central to tea philosophy.

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🔹 [ 日本語解説 ]

【基本情報】
• 作家：中村宗悦
• 技法：一閑張・金蒔絵
• 時代：現代（平成〜令和）
• 産地：日本
• 寸法：高さ約7cm、横幅約6.5cm
• 付属：共箱・共布
• 状態：良好

【解説】
一閑張は、江戸時代の工人・飛来一閑に由来する技法で、和紙を幾重にも重ねて漆を施すことで、驚くほど軽量でありながら堅牢な器を生み出します。茶の湯において、この軽さは手に取った瞬間の感動をもたらし、薄茶器として珍重されてきました。

中村宗悦氏の本品は、黒漆の縮緬地に吉野山の金蒔絵を施した逸品です。正面には春の訪れを告げる蕨手（わらびて）が金で描かれ、蓋には遠山に千本桜を思わせる金箔の点描が広がります。春の茶席にふさわしい、季節感あふれる薄茶器です。

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🔹 [ SHIPPING & PACKAGING ]
• Dispatch: Within 1-6 business days
• Carrier: Japan Post EMS / UPS (with tracking)
• Packaging: Carefully wrapped with protective materials

*Light as a petal, deep as a mountain—the weight of Yoshino rests in the palm of one hand.*