- XVII-XVIII

M-738

Unità di misura: cm; Altezza: 21.2; Larghezza: 14

Giappone

legno intagliato e dipinto

Japanese theatre masks are the result of the art and talent of specialised sculptors: rather small and shaped to achieve various expressive effects by exploiting the play of light and shadow, they are made from a single piece of wood, usually cypress, painted with polychrome lacquers and paints. Nō masks (nōmen) are classified into five main characters, each comprising several varieties: this one belongs to the main character Onna (woman) of the Shakumi variety, a middle-aged woman. She is characterised by her white complexion, shaved and drawn eyebrows on the upper forehead and, above all, blackened teeth, a cosmetic practice typical of married women (ohaguro). Masks representing female roles were worn by male actors, as acting was forbidden to women. Female mask for Nō theater "Shiro Shakumi", in inlaid and painted wood depicting a middle-aged adult woman of about forty years old, grieving the loss of a loved one. The face is oval and has a pale complexion; the mouth, painted red, is half-open and reveals the upper dental arch whose teeth are blackened through the ohaguro practice in use at the time. The eyes are elongated and have golden irises, the eyebrows are shaved and painted with powdered ink according to the hikimayu practice in use among married women of the Meiji period. The hair, with some loose locks, is painted on the top of the head and falls along the sides of the face.

1741 - 1760 - XVIII

L-0039

Unità di misura: cm; Altezza: 5.4; Larghezza: 25.6; Profondità: 22.7

legno laccato

"Urushi" is the term for Japanese lacquered objects. The gold maki-e lacquer decoration technique, literally "sprinkled painting", is the Japanese technique par excellence and is achieved by sprinkling the lacquered surface with metal powders, usually gold and silver. The lacquered objects were often for everyday use, such as this suzuribako writing box containing the stone on which the ink was prepared. The external decoration, a lone pine tree on a rock in the stormy sea, was a motif dear to hitosumatsu literati. Suzuribako desk box; this type of box was used to store writing instruments, such as brushes and seals. It still contains the plate on which to prepare the ink, a plant-shaped inkwell and the space to store the brushes. On the outer surface of the lid there is a night view: among the waves of a rough sea stands a rocky islet on which stands a solitary pine tree, a reference to the poetic and literary environment. Both the interior of the lid and the interior of the suzuribako are decorated with a similar marine motif: a flock of plovers flying on the waves. The larger desk boxes could also hold tools such as the paper cutter, the punch to pierce the sheets in order to bind them, and a handle to tap into the ink pad without touching it. The oldest boxes could already contain sheets inside; the next, smaller ones, contained, like a box, only writing materials and a separate box (ryōshibako) was intended for sheets and documents.

- XIX

C-50

Unità di misura: cm; Altezza: 16.2; Larghezza: 22.3; Profondità: 12.4

Giappone, Owari no Kuni, Seto

porcellana dipinta

A magnificent specimen of blue and white Japanese porcelain from Seto, one of the kilns that faced the competition of the international market in the mid-19th century and later exerted significant influence on the Art Nouveau movement.The karashishi, literally "Chinese lion", is a fantastic animal from the Oriental tradition, dear to Buddhist iconography. It always has a positive value, is often depicted in playful attitudes and its roar is said to have the power to reawaken faith. Statuette depicting a Chinese lion (karashishi) in a playful position; resting on the front legs, with the back raised and the jaws open. White porcelain is covered with a blue cover. The underglaze in cobalt blue suggests fur made with spirals and with two different shades of color. This example of white and blue Japanese porcelain comes from Seto, one of the kilns that faced international market competition in the mid-nineteenth century and later exerted significant influences on the Art Nouveau movements. The subject of the karashishi was recurrent in small Japanese decorative statuary; it is an imaginary animal of the Chinese tradition that soon spread to the rest of Asia. It has always positive value, represented in often playful attitudes, its roar is said to have the power to awaken faith. The figure of the karashishi was born in the environment of Chinese Buddhism with apotropaic intent: lions, often a male with a globe between the claws, and the other female with a cub, in the form of statues, had to protect the building. They were placed to defend both from harmful spiritual influences and from malicious people, they were in fact placed at the entrance of temples or palaces. Their figure was then widely used for liturgical furnishings (such as incense burners, like the specimen exhibited in the museum hall), or objects of applied art (statuettes) as in our case.

- XIX

E-19 | AA 5077

Unità di misura: cm; Altezza: 24.5; Larghezza: 19; Profondità: 18

Giappone, Prefettura di Kyōto, Kyōto

lega di rame battuta, patinata e parzialmente dorata

The war masks accompanied and completed the samurai's armour; they had the task of protecting the warrior's face from possible wounds, and often had a terrifying or monstrous appearance, both to frighten the opponent and to show the technical skill in combat of the warrior who wore them. The war mask in question portrays a Karasutengu, a raven demon and covered the entire face. This type of mask was very rare and was used exclusively by high-ranking samurai on official occasions (as it did not guarantee optimal visibility unlike half-masks that only covered the nose and mouth and were the most used in battle). The choice to depict a Tengu on a war mask underlines the will to show the warrior who wears it as a true sword master, an extraordinary being with incredible combat skills, like a Tengu, considered a Master of swords and a skilled fighter. The mask is dated: Year of Meitoku III (1392) and it is signed by Ichijō Horikawa Jūichi Daimyōchin Yoshihiro saku, "Made by Myōchin Yoshihiro, eleventh generation, of Ichijō Horikawa", but recent studies lead us to believe that it is a case of jimei (false attribution), a common Japanese practice on swords and armour, which aimed to increase its value and authority by attributing them to illustrious blacksmiths or by tracing the works back to an ancient period. In this case, the work is attributed to a member of the Myōchin family, the most important blacksmiths specialized in armour, but it is dated to an implausible historical period. The activity of a blacksmith named Myōchin Yoshihiro from the Horikawa area of Kyōto is instead attested at the beginning of the century.

- XIX

SC-6

Unità di misura: cm; Altezza: 35.4

Giappone

legno- assemblaggio, intaglio

The protective figures of Buddhism Agyō and Ungyō are characterised by their plastic pose, musculature and contracted faces. The statues are placed at the entrance of Buddhist temples to protect worshippers and the temple space, and can reach up to 8 metres in height. These models are made using the Yosegi zukuri technique, "structure of assembled pieces of wood". Sculpture depicting Ungyō, one of the two Guardian Kings (Kongō Rikishi 金剛力士), "bearers of Lightning" (Sanskrit vajrapāṇi). He is represented standing and posing plastically on a rocky base. The artifact was probably born as a template in view of the creation of a large specimen.