Negoro Turtle Natsume Lacquer Tea Caddy Sen Shoan Design Tanaka Sochi

The red lacquer speaks before you touch it. This natsume (tea caddy) by Tanaka Sochi, titled "Negoro Kame Natsume" (根来亀棗), is made in the manner of Sen no Rikyu's grandson, Sen Shoan — whose taste ran toward objects that held their dignity quietly, without ornament beyond what was necessary. The form is a perfect ovoid, the turtle shape (kame) rounded into pure geometry. The shuro-buki (palm fiber brush) finish leaves the lacquer surface traced with fine parallel lines that catch light obliquely.

On the lid's crown: a single gold makie crest — the tortoise-shell (kikko) pattern rendered with precision and restraint. The red is not decorative red. It is the red that accumulates meaning through centuries of association with root-lacquer (negoro) objects: the warmth of vermilion lacquer where use has worn the surface to reveal layers beneath.

Included: tomobako (original wooden box) inscribed "少庵好写 根来亀棗 / 宗智" with artist seal.

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[ BASIC DETAILS ]
• Type: Natsume (small tea caddy for usucha thin tea)
• Dimensions: Approx. D 6.4 cm × H 6.6 cm
• Technique: Negoro lacquer (root lacquer in vermilion over black ground), gold makie on lid
• Condition: Good; consistent with careful use; lacquer surface intact
• Provenance: Tomobako inscribed "少庵好写 根来亀棗 / 宗智" with seal
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Negoro-nuri (根来塗) originated at Negoro-ji temple in Wakayama Prefecture, where monks used red lacquer over a black undercoat for daily utensils. Over time and use, the red surface wore through to reveal the black beneath — creating a natural, unplanned beauty that became one of the most admired surfaces in Japanese decorative arts. Tea masters of the Momoyama period adopted negoro objects precisely because their beauty was earned rather than applied.

Sen Shoan (1546–1614), Rikyu's adopted grandson, founded the Omotesenke school. Objects made "in his taste" (Shoan-gomi) carry the weight of that lineage: deliberate, reductive, sufficient.

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【日本語説明】
田中宗智作、少庵好写の根来亀棗。朱漆の根来塗に蓋に金蒔絵の亀甲文を配した格調ある一品。共箱には「少庵好写 根来亀棗 / 宗智」の墨書と朱印あり。茶道の稽古・鑑賞どちらにも対応できる作品です。
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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