JAPANESE FLOWER VASES 



ing through the neck opening is as necessary 

 to the plant as the oxygen it receives from 

 the depths of the water; thus also the water 

 remains sweet much longer than in our small- 

 necked vases, where it so quickly becomes 

 foul. 



Many are the odd and fanciful signifi- 

 cances connected with these Japanese recep- 

 tacles. For instance, the hanging vases so 

 numerous and quaint in form came into use 

 through the idea that flowers presented by 

 an esteemed friend should not be placed 

 where they could be looked down upon, so 

 they were raised and hung. And in the 

 hanging bamboo vases the large, round sur- 

 face on top is supposed to represent the 

 moon, and the hole for the nail a star. 

 The cut, or opening, below the top is called 

 Jukumuki the "wind drawing through place.'* 



The low, flat vases, more used in summer 

 than winter, not only give variety in the 

 form of receptacles, but, as with vines and 

 hanging vases, make it possible to arrange 

 plants of bulbous and water growth in nat- 



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