LACQUER WORK. 375 



decoration in relief, with several other specialties, even now essen- 

 tially distinguishes Japanese lacquer wares beyond those of the 

 Chinese, e.g., those of Canton. 



The period of greatest brilliancy in the old Japanese lacquer art 

 was unquestionably the end of the 17th century, the time of the 

 splendour-loving Shogun Tokugawa Tsunayoshi (1681 to 1709), or 

 Jokenin according to his posthumous name. Gold lacquer articles 

 (small chests, boxes, writing utensils, etc.) of this time are veritable 

 masterpieces in the making of wdiich a workman was often engaged 

 for years, whose ornamentation was performed with surprising 

 patience, care, fineness, and truth to nature, and whose price in our 

 days is correspondingly high, for the great artistic perfection of 

 many pieces is only equalled by the richness of the gold employed 

 in the decorations. 



In order to understand this period and its industry correctly, we 

 must call to mind how at this time the country was almost en- 

 tirely shut up and thrown back upon itself ; how firmly grounded, 

 fearing no foe, was the rule of the Tokugawa Shoguns. Thus 

 lyeyasu's successors in Yeddo were able to give themselves over 

 undisturbed to the refined enjoyments of life, and as the treasures 

 of the land were poured in upon them, and Sado's mines still 

 yielded rich returns of gold and silver, the value of the former 

 reaching four or five times that of the latter, it did not matter how 

 much time nor how large a quantity of the precious metals were 

 used which a fine lacquer work demanded, if only it was satis- 

 factory in other regards. 



In proportion as Yeddo, the city of the Tokugawa, from the year 

 1600 grew in extent, power and appearance, it became more and 

 more the rendezvous of the most skilful lacquer workers. The 

 tomb of the Shogun Hidetada, in the Mausoleum at Shiba, a 

 part of -Tokio, which dates back to the second quarter of the 17th 

 century, is undoubtedly one of the oldest and most beautiful of the 

 large lacquered products of a high degree of perfection which 

 have come down to us from this time. 



With the beginning of the i8th century the Giyo-bu Nashi-ji 

 (see p. 371) was added to the former modes of decoration. It is 

 named after Giyo-bu Taro, an influential lacquerer in Yeddo, whose 

 method was largely followed. It consisted in laying small squares 

 of gold-foil in places, e.g., on the pictured trunks of trees, a weari- 

 some and costly mode of ornamentation, such as we often see 

 on old Japanese lacquer work, but which we cannot appreciate as 

 thoroughly as the Japanese themselves. 



Many of the fine gold lacquer wares of the time of the Tokugawa 

 Shogun bear the simple arms of this family or of some Daimio 

 who had ordered them. Among them are the many beautiful little 

 chests, with box-like over-hanging covers. They were used at 

 weddings and other festal occasions for sending presents, and were 

 carried by heavy, elegant silk cords with tassels, which fastened 



