Mother of Pearl Box, with Metal Rim

This box is unusual in its shape and creation. A very feminine object, it must have belonged to a lady of the time. One can imagine it sitting in her boudoir on a low lacquered table, just in front of a mirror. This unique piece is an example of excellent handicraft and I feel that its artisan must have put a lot of love into the box when crafting it. It tells a story of immigrants having decided their fortunes in Japan, from a Chinese origin. Having found the box in one of the hidden, crooked alleys of Tokyo, makes me believe that it was crafted in Japan by one of the Chinese merchants, who sought his fate and fortunes in this country. Maybe it travelled up from the ancient Freeport of Nagasaki to the Capital….I might be wrong, but this is the story it tells me. I hold it against the light and the mother of pearl starts to become translucent in soft, reddish yellow, like an occasional full moon in summer.

The box's overall shape is round, but strictly speaking, its wall is made from twenty pieces of solid mother of pearl, neatly arranged with not the slightest gap in between each piece. Both bottom and top are crafted out of one large piece of mother of pearl, most likely from an Abalone shell considering the size. Darkened metal fittings between lid and container and at the bottom create a simple contrast to the otherwise light mother of pearl.

DB