Tradition Travel Transition 2021-11-04 Auction - 374 Price Results - Bonhams in England
Tradition Travel Transition
A black-lacquer two-case inro
An impressive imperial presentation cloisonné
A fine cloisonné-enamel and musen ('wireless')
Done
London, England, United Kingdom
Auction Details

Tradition Travel Transition

The fascination for Japan as a travel destination speaks to many. Before the world is ready again for tourism, Bonhams has gathered a collection of Japanese prints capturing the most scenic, albeit unfrequented and secluded, sides of Japan in the 20th century. This collection of Shin Hanga (New Print) by Kawase Hasui (1883-1957) spans more than 30 lots, and will be presented in Bonhams London sale of Tradition Travel and Transition: Japanese Art across the Centuries on 4 November 2021. Kawase Hasui, a towering figure in Japan's Shin Hanga tradition, is well known for his love of travel, a pastime which meant much more than mere tourism for him. As Hasui himself once wrote: '... travelling is my favourite hobby... and this hobby is not just something that I casually speak of, since sketching is my goal...' He was particular about where he would open his sketchbook, depicting famous spots but rarely choosing the most obvious or famous angles. Lot 350 (Evening in Beppu), for example, depicts the onsen (hot spring) resort of Beppu, as popular in 1929 as it is today, but seen through a tangle of bare, wintry branches. The majority of his prints in this sale come from private collections. Some bear one of the earliest copyright seals of his long-term publisher, Watanabe Shozaburo, while a few are designs even earlier and rarer, dating from before the great earthquake that devastated Tokyo and Yokohama in 1923. Most major museum collections of Hasui's prints are in the United States, where his work first gained an international following in the 1920s—it is rumoured that the late Steve Jobs was also an avid collector.
SOLD
A wood netsuke of a tiger: A wood netsuke of a tigerBy Masanao, Yamada, Ise Province, Edo period (1615-1868), 19th centuryThe tiger seated, turning to its left, snarling with an open mouth, its long tail passing forward around
Est.
£2,500
-
£3,500
An ivory netsuke of a tigress and cub: An ivory netsuke of a tigress and cubSchool of Tomotada, Kyoto, late 18th centuryThe mother seated, her head turned to the right, her tail passing over her right flank, one forepaw resting
Est.
£4,000
-
£5,000
Lot Passed
SOLD
An ivory netsuke of a recumbent deer: An ivory netsuke of a recumbent deerBy Garaku, Osaka, Edo period (1615-1868), early 19th centurySeated, its legs drawn into a compact composition, turning to its left to lick its left haunch, the
Est.
£1,000
-
£1,500
An ebony netsuke of a wasp in a rotting pear: An ebony netsuke of a wasp in a rotting pearBy Sangetsu, Edo period (1615-1868), mid 19th centuryThe pear of typical form, carved all over with ukibori pimples, the wasp eating its way through a
Est.
£2,000
-
£2,500
Lot Passed
SOLD
A kurogaki (black persimmon) wood sashi netsuke of an: A kurogaki (black persimmon) wood sashi netsuke of an aubergineAttributed to Kaigyokusai Masatsugu, Osaka, Meiji era (1868-1912), circa 1870The aubergine of elongated form, the long stem curling to
Est.
£1,200
-
£1,800
SOLD
A fine wood netsuke of a recumbent kirin: A fine wood netsuke of a recumbent kirinBy Ikkan (1817-1893), Nagoya, 19th centuryLying with its head slightly raised and turned to the left, its tail drawn forward and its legs folded underneath to
Est.
£15,000
-
£20,000
A metal-inlaid gold-lacquer four-case inro: A metal-inlaid gold-lacquer four-case inroBy a member of the Kajikawa Family, Edo period (1615-1868), circa 1800The gold-lacquer ground decorated in hiramaki-e and takamaki-e with kirikane accents,
Est.
£2,500
-
£3,500
Lot Passed
SOLD
A roiro (black-lacquer) two-case inro: A roiro (black-lacquer) two-case inroBy Tatsuke Takamitsu (Kokyo, active 1818-1830), Edo period (1615-1868), early/mid 19th centuryThe black-lacquer ground decorated in polychrome and gold takamaki-e
Est.
£1,500
-
£2,000
A lacquer single-case inro: A lacquer single-case inroBy Ryusei, Edo period (1615-1868), 19th centuryThe rich gyobu ground decorated in polychrome takamaki-e, depicting a snake, its mouth wide open in a hiss, its long body
Est.
£12,000
-
£15,000
Lot Passed
SOLD
A boxwood three-case inro, ojime and netsuke in the: A boxwood three-case inro, ojime and netsuke in the form of terrapinsBy Gekko, Edo period (1615-1868), mid 19th centuryEach naturalistically carved, the inro with the terrapin's head and legs
Est.
£1,200
-
£1,800
A roiro (black-lacquer) five-case inro: A roiro (black-lacquer) five-case inroEdo period (1615-1868), circa 1800The rich black-lacquer ground decorated with togidashi maki-e, depicting a red spiny lobster perched on rocks at the shoreline,
Est.
£4,500
-
£5,500
Lot Passed
A metal-inlaid gold-lacquer four-case inro: A metal-inlaid gold-lacquer four-case inroBy Shokyosai, Edo period (1615-1868), circa 1850Of oval form, each side with a foliate reserve, decorated in gold hiramaki-e with polychrome accents,
Est.
£2,500
-
£3,500
Lot Passed
SOLD
A large black-lacquer wood single-case inro: A large black-lacquer wood single-case inroStyle of Shibata Zeshin, Meiji era (1868-1912), late 19th centuryIn the form of a partly used ink-cake, carved in relief on one side with a tiger standing
Est.
£5,000
-
£6,000
A roiro (black-lacquer) saya (sheath) inro: A roiro (black-lacquer) saya (sheath) inroBy Kajikawa Shoshin (Akinobu), after a design by Kano Naonobu (1607-1650), Edo period (1615-1868) or Meiji era (1868-1912), 19th centuryThe saya decorated
Est.
£1,500
-
£2,000
Lot Passed
SOLD
A black-lacquer two-case inro: A black-lacquer two-case inroBy Shibata Zeshin (1807-1891), Meiji era (1868-1912), late 19th centuryOf rectangular Chinese ink-cake form decorated with intentionally crackled ground and carved chips
Est.
£30,000
-
£35,000
SOLD
A tabako-ire (tobacco pouch) with kagamibuta netsuke: A tabako-ire (tobacco pouch) with kagamibuta netsuke and a wood netsukeThe netsuke attributed to Tanaka Minko, both Edo period (1615-1868), early/mid 19th centuryThe tabako-ire made of leather tooled
Est.
£800
-
£1,200
SOLD
A shell-inlaid yatate (portable brush and ink: A shell-inlaid yatate (portable brush and ink container)Somada style, Meiji era (1868-1912), late 19th/early 20th centuryEntirely inlaid with iridescent small flakes of shell to create tightly
Est.
£1,500
-
£2,000
SOLD
An ivory kiseruzutsu (pipe case): An ivory kiseruzutsu (pipe case)By Joho, Edo period (1615-1868) or Meiji era (1868-1912), 19th centuryOf muso-zutsu form, carved in relief with Tobosaku Sennin standing, holding a peach, a deer
Est.
£700
-
£800
An ivory kiseruzutsu (pipe case): An ivory kiseruzutsu (pipe case)By Kyomin, Tokyo, Meiji era (1868-1912), late 19th centuryOf muso-zutsu form, carved in relief with a sennin emerging from a dilapidated hut beneath a withered tree
Est.
£700
-
£800
Lot Passed
An ivory kiseruzutsu (pipe case): An ivory kiseruzutsu (pipe case)By Tesseki, Taisho era (1912-1926), dated 1913Of muso-zutsu form, finely engraved in kebori with a continuous scene of Chinese scholars in a mountainous landscape,
Est.
£700
-
£800
Lot Passed
SOLD
Nine tsuba (sword guards): Nine tsuba (sword guards)Edo period (1615-1868), 18th to 19th centuryThe first of shakudo, lobed mokkogata outline, chiselled with chrysanthemums embellished with gold; the second of iron, circular,
Est.
£1,500
-
£2,000
Six Echizen tsuba (sword guards): Six Echizen tsuba (sword guards)Edo period (1615-1868), 17th to 19th centuryAll of iron, circular or roughly circular, and made in Echizen Province, the first pierced and chiselled with vine leaves
Est.
£800
-
£1,000
Lot Passed