Product Description

6360 A black and gold lacquer ko-tsuzumi (small, two-headed drum with an hour-glass shaped body) decorated with a stylised design of a thunderbolt in nashiji.

Japan 16th/17th century Momoyama / Edo period

Dimensions: H. 12½” (31cm)

The striking decorative style of this drum is known as Kōdai-ji maki-e after the name of the Kyoto temple established in 1605. The distinctive patterns of Kōdai-ji lacquers set a fashion which dominated lacquer design of the Kyoto region during the early seventeenth century. The dramatic juxtaposition of two contrasting patterns along diagonal divisions of the surface, known as katamigawari, is typical of Kōdai-ji lacquer designs and is also seen in textiles of the Momoyama period.