Inro makie Rooster and hen

Description

Item: 

Inro makie Rooster and hen. Five cases Inro, lacquered with a cockerel and hen, the former standing on a drum, beneath a pine tree whose trailing branches extend to the other side above two chicks, the drum and pine with inlaid silver details, the interior of rich nashiji, signed in gold lacquer on the base Hasensai. Late Edo early Meiji.

9 x 5,5 cm

What is an Inro?

An inro is a traditional Japanese case for holding small objects, suspended from the obi (sash) worn around the waist when wearing a kimono. They are often highly decorated with various materials such as lacquer and various techniques such as maki-e, and are more decorative than other Japanese lacquerware.

Because traditional Japanese dress lacked pockets, objects were often carried by hanging them from the obi in containers known as sagemono (a hanging object attached to a sash). Most sagemono were created for specialized contents, such as tobacco, pipes, writing brush and ink, but the type known as inro is suitable for carrying small things, and was created in the Sengoku period (1467–1615) as a portable identity seal and medicine container for travel.