Japanese
Medicine Case (Inro): Cicada, early 19th century
Lacquered wood with gold and silver takamaki-e, hiramaki-e, and nashiji; crystal netsuke and amethyst ojime, 9 x 6 cm (3 9/16 x 2 3/8 in.)
This small Japanese medicine case is made of lacquered wood. It resembles a section of a tree branch. The brown, polished lacquer looks like irregularly grained bark with a cicada drawn in gold on one side. The reverse shows a small, round-topped, gold container with double handles drawn in an open weave diamond pattern. The case opens along the side. No hinges or clasp are visible. The round top and bottom of the medicine case are pierced in two places near the top and threaded with a light blue fabric cord. Attached to the cord, there is a large, oval purple amethyst that slides along the cord and, at its end, there is a much larger, clear, crystal, highly polished, carved teardrop. This crystal netsuke serves as both an ornament and a way of attaching the case to a person’s sash.
Little Salon
Commentary
Depicting a cicada alighted on a piece of wood, the inroopens at the side to reveal five tiny drawers. A basket outlined in gold appears on the back. The netsuke is crystal carved in the shape of an eggplant; the sliding clasp (ojime) is amethyst.
Source: “Japanese Objects,” in Journeys East: Isabella Stewart Gardner and Asia, edited by Alan Chong and Noriko Murai (Boston: ISGM and Gutenberg Periscope, 2009): 414.
Source: “Japanese Objects,” in Journeys East: Isabella Stewart Gardner and Asia, edited by Alan Chong and Noriko Murai (Boston: ISGM and Gutenberg Periscope, 2009): 414.