Omodaka Maki-e Chu-natsume Tea Caddy by Nakagawa Shuho

Experience authentic Japanese tea ceremony lacquerware with this Omodaka Maki-e Chu-natsume. This Tea Caddy serves as a Nakagawa Shuho Maki-e Masterwork and Botanical Lacquer Natsume, featuring Gold Arrowhead Leaf Design and Copper Flower Maki-e—a must-have for any Art Collector seeking Summer Tea Ceremony Art and Japanese Urushi Lacquerware.

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🔹 [ BASIC DETAILS ]

• Artist: Nakagawa Shuho (中川秀甫)
• Technique: Gold and copper maki-e on black urushi
• Era: 2010s
• Origin: Japan
• Dimensions: 6.7 cm H × 6.8 cm dia. (2.6" × 2.7")
• Box: Signed tomobako with artist seal
• Condition: Excellent — no chips, cracks, or wear to lacquer surface

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🔹 [ CULTURAL & ARTISTIC INSIGHT ]

Omodaka — the water plantain — grows where still water meets the edge of land. Its arrowhead leaves rise on long, arching stems. Its five-petaled flowers open without urgency. In Japanese culture, this plant carries the weight of a paradox: something rooted in marshland that became a symbol of martial victory.

Nakagawa Shuho renders the omodaka in gold and copper maki-e against unadorned black lacquer. The arching leaves sweep from the body onto the lid, tracing a single gesture that unifies the two halves of the vessel. Copper-toned flowers emerge between the gold foliage — a color choice that grounds the botanical imagery in earthen warmth rather than spectacle.

This is seasonal lacquerwork at its most considered. The omodaka places this natsume firmly in summer — a host's silent declaration that the gathering exists within a particular moment of the year, and that moment has been honored.

*"The arrowhead leaf points in one direction only — forward. It has no interest in where it has been."*

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🔹 [ DEEP-DIVE COMMENTARY ]

**Omodaka in Samurai Culture**: The arrowhead shape of the omodaka leaf (沢瀉) led samurai families to adopt it as a kamon (family crest). Known as "kachi-gusa" (勝ち草, victory grass), the plant became associated with triumph and forward momentum. The Fukushima, Matsudaira, and other prominent clans bore variations of the omodaka crest into battle.

**Seasonal Significance in Chado**: In the tea ceremony calendar, omodaka belongs to the height of summer — roughly June through August. Selecting this natsume signals the host's awareness of the natural world beyond the tearoom walls. The aquatic plant evokes cool water and marshy shade, offering a psychological counterpoint to the season's heat.

**Gold and Copper Maki-e Palette**: The deliberate use of copper-toned maki-e for the flowers, against gold for the leaves, demonstrates sophisticated color thinking. Pure gold alone would create uniform brilliance. The introduction of copper produces depth and earthiness — a reminder that the plant grows from mud, not air.

**Compositional Unity Across Lid and Body**: Nakagawa Shuho designs the maki-e to flow continuously from body to lid. When the natsume is assembled, the stems and leaves form a single botanical arc. When the lid is removed during temae, the composition separates — each half carrying its own fragment of the whole.

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🔹 [ 日本語解説 ]

【基本情報】
• 作家：中川秀甫
• 技法：金・銅蒔絵
• 時代：2010年代
• 産地：日本
• 寸法：高さ6.7cm × 径6.8cm
• 付属：共箱（印あり）
• 状態：優良 — 漆面に傷・欠けなし

【解説】
沢瀉（おもだか）は水辺に自生する植物で、矢じり形の葉と小さな五弁花が特徴です。その葉の形状から武家の間では「勝ち草」と呼ばれ、福島氏・松平氏をはじめ多くの大名家が家紋に採用しました。

中川秀甫はこの沢瀉を、黒漆地に金と銅の蒔絵で描いています。弓なりに伸びる金色の葉は器の胴から蓋へと連続し、蓋を合わせた時にひとつの植物画が完成する構成です。花には銅色の蒔絵を用い、金一色では得られない土の温もりを添えています。

茶道において沢瀉は盛夏の意匠。この棗を選ぶことは、亭主が季節の只中に身を置き、水辺の涼やかさを席中に招き入れる意思表示にほかなりません。

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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

*An arrowhead leaf, pointing toward summer — patient, rooted, and certain of its direction.*