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What makes this doll pair special
The up close look and feel
The bride's lacquer is a deep, warm red, darker than vermilion, with gold sakura blossoms scattered across her sleeves. The gold sits with a faint raised quality where it meets the black and red linework of her fan, a texture you only notice this close.
Her groom is glossier and darker, almost black, with a single gold bow painted at the chest in a thinner, looser brushstroke than the fan, more like a single confident line than a filled shape. Turn either figure over and the lacquer gives way to bare wood at the base, slightly rough, a quiet reminder of the material underneath all that shine.
Charming details
Look closely at the linework, the sakura, the fan, the thin gold bow, and you can see it was laid down with a brush barely thicker than a hair, one careful stroke at a time.
Ouchi-nuri is only made by five workshops left in Japan today, and just two of them still have someone to pass the craft on to. A steady hand like this one is getting rarer by the year.
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Made by Kuwahara Ouchi-nuri Lacquerware Workshop (桑原大内塗漆器大内人形製作所), Yamaguchi City, Yamaguchi Prefecture.
One of a small number of workshops still producing Ouchi-nuri today, a nationally designated traditional craft of Japan (経済産業大臣指定伝統的工芸品), alongside Hagi-yaki.
Original tomobako included, with hand-painted calligraphy and two red maker's seals, along with the workshop's own documentation leaflet on the Ouchi ningyo tradition.
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Mid-Shōwa period (circa 1945 to 1965), based on the workshop's phone number format on the leaflet.
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The doll itself is about 5.5 cm high
Whole set in box weighs 200 grams
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Minor wear to gold paint on the male doll on the side.
Otherwise excellent vintage condition, no chips, cracks, or repairs to the lacquer surface.
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Keep Ouchi-nuri lacquerware away from direct sunlight, which fades the lacquer and can cause it to crack over time.
Dry air and heat sources are equally damaging, so a stable environment with moderate humidity, away from radiators and windows, suits it best.
For cleaning, a soft dry cloth is sufficient. Never use abrasive materials, chemicals, or water directly on the lacquer surface.
*Decorative items such as the whisk are for styling
and scale purposes only and not included in the sale
