Pair of two urushi lacquer bowls with maki-e Mount Fuji scene, signed by Tanitake workshop, Shōwa period

Name: Japanese urushi lacquer bowls maki-e Fuji Tanitake Showa | KAIKO&CO
Brand: KAIKO&CO
Availability: InStock

from €90.00

There is a color in Japanese lacquerware that has no good equivalent in Western craft: a deep oxblood red, warm enough to hold light, layered beneath a translucent black finish so that both colors live in the same surface at once. These two bowls with fitted lids have it.

The technique is called tame-nuri, and what it does to this particular shape, a round generous bowl with a low footing and a domed lid, is to make the red pull through wherever light hits the curve. The Mount Fuji scene in gold maki-e wraps fully around both bowls so that the landscape only reveals itself completely when you rotate them in your hands.

The bowls are signed by the Tanitake workshop (谷竹), based in Matsuyama on the island of Shikoku. Matsuyama has a long tradition of lacquerware production, and the pieces that came out of its established workshops were made for household use at a level that assumes the work will last. The maki-e on these bowls is not a tourist souvenir motif.

The gold application is precise, the scene is composed, and the combination of tame-nuri depth with gold decoration is a combination that requires skill in both techniques to execute well.

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The gold application is precise, the scene is composed, and the combination of tame-nuri depth with gold decoration is a combination that requires skill in both techniques to execute well.

What makes this urushi lacquer set special

The up close look and feel

The tame-nuri surface is not one color but two held in suspension: the red underneath pulls through the black as you shift the bowl in the light, and the depth it creates is not something a photograph captures fully. In the hand, urushi lacquer over turned wood is warmer than ceramic and quieter than metal.

The gold of the maki-e is laid close enough to the surface that it reads as part of the lacquer itself, not applied on top of it. The lids sit flush and lift cleanly.

Charming details

The maker's signature on the base of each bowl is written in red lacquer on black, the same red that glows through the exterior. It is only visible when you turn the bowl over, two kanji applied with a fine brush.

The Fuji scene wraps continuously around the full circumference, so the mountain and the pine branches only reveal themselves in full when you rotate each bowl slowly. There is no front and no back: the scene rewards the full turn.

- Material: hand-turned wood, natural urushi lacquer.
- Workshop name: Tanitake (谷竹)
- Signed on the base of each bowl in red lacquer.
- Source: purchased from an antique specialist in Matsuyama, Ehime Prefecture, Shikoku, Japan.
- Techniques: tame-nuri (translucent black urushi over deep red base layer) and maki-e (gold powder applied to wet lacquer).
- Matsuyama, Ehime Prefecture, Shikoku, Japan.
- Shōwa period, ca. 1950 to 1975.
- Set of 2 bowls with lids.
- Diameter: approx. 13 cm per bowl.
- Height with lid: approx. 8 cm per bowl.
- Weight: approx. 270 gr for the set.
- Excellent vintage condition.
- Both bowls fully intact, no cracks, chips or repairs.
- Lacquer finish well-preserved with no significant lifting or loss.
- Consistent with display use rather than regular table use.
- Keep urushi lacquerware out of direct sunlight: UV exposure fades the color and can cause the surface to crack over time.
- Avoid placing near heat sources or in rooms with very low humidity, as dry air is damaging to urushi.
- For cleaning, a soft dry cloth is usually sufficient.
- If a mark needs more attention, use a lightly damp cloth and dry the surface immediately and gently.
- Never use abrasive sponges, chemical cleaners, or anything sharp.