AN UNUSUAL JAPANESE MINIATURE TWO-CASE LACQUER INRO

AN UNUSUAL JAPANESE MINIATURE TWO-CASE LACQUER INRO

MEIJI PERIOD OR LATER, 19TH CENTURY OR LATER

The delicate body rendered in gold and red hiramaki-e, kirikane and takamaki-e on the nashiji ground and with inlays in aogai (abalone shell); decorated to one side with a taiko drum amongst falling maple leaves and the reverse with a torikabuto, an elaborate headdress with long tassels, also surrounded by autumn leaves; suspended on a silk cord and with a small coral ojime, 4.5cm. (3)

The torikabuto is an elaborate hat inspired by the crownlike head of the mythical phoenix. This headdress and the taiko drum were used for gagaku, the traditional Imperial music and dance performance.

The unusually small size of this inro may indicate that it was made for a child to wear on a special occasion, possibly for the Hanamatsuri or Kodomo no Hi festivals. Also, see A S Pate, Ningyo, The Art of the Japanese Doll, pp.60-61 for a mitate gosho-ningyo doll wearing an inro of similar size.