Masters of Enamel: The Collection of John and Muriel Okladek | Including Further Japanese Works of Art from the Meiji Period, 1868-1912
Masters of Enamel: The Collection of John and Muriel Okladek | Including Further Japanese Works of Art from the Meiji Period, 1868-1912
Property from the John and Muriel Okladek Collection
A cloisonné enamel vase | Signed Dai Nihon Hayashi Kodenji zo (made by Hayashi Kodenji of Great Japan) | Meiji period, late 19th century
Lot Closed
November 3, 03:01 PM GMT
Estimate
10,000 - 15,000 GBP
Lot Details
Description
Property from the John and Muriel Okladek Collection
A cloisonné enamel vase
Signed Dai Nihon Hayashi Kodenji zo (made by Hayashi Kodenji of Great Japan)
Meiji period, late 19th century
the oviform vase on short foot with silver mount, high neck with wide neck rim and silver liner, decorated in various coloured cloisonné enamels and thicknesses of silver wire on a deep blue ground, depicting a central cherry tree in blossom surrounded by a profusion of chrysanthemums, wild pinks, and other flowers and foliage on a river bank, the foot and neck rims with flower heads on a scrollwork ground, the shoulder with a brocade design, signed Dai Nihon Hayashi Kodenji zo (made by Hayashi Kodenji of Great Japan)
19 cm., 7½ in. high
Hayashi Kodenji was a pivotal figure in the history of cloisonné enamel manufacturer. He was instrumental in the formation and leadership of the Shippo-cho enamellers guild, and it is probable that he worked for the Nagoya-based Shippo Kaisha. As well as being an innovative enameller he was also an astute businessman. Stories are told that in his early days he walked from Nagoya to Yokohama to sell his wares at a time when there was a long-standing prohibition on selling copper (which included the body of the cloisonné objects). He worked with his son, Kodenji II for over 40 years and it is often hard to differentiate the work of the two makers. He exhibited and won prizes at many international exhibitions: Nuremberg 1885 (silver), Paris 1889 (silver) and St Louis 1904 (gold). In 1912 Glendining of London auctioned over 300 ‘Japanese cloisonné enamels from the Glasgow Exhibition offered for sale by Mr. K Hayashi of Nagoya’.
For a comparable example of a vase by Hayashi Kodenji decorated with a profusion of flowers and foliage in the Victoria & Albert Museum (The V&A), London, accession no. FE.34:1, 2-2011, go to:
https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O1192944/-vase-hayashi-kodenji/
Also, a further comparable vase by Hayashi Kodenji was sold in these rooms, Sotheby's, Fine Japanese Art, 5 November 2019, Lot 129, go to: