KOMAI OTOJIRO (1842-1917) OF KYOTO

A Finely Inlaid Iron Vessel and Cover in the Form of a Squat Lobed Gourd
Meiji era (1868-1912), probably circa 1895-1905
The Persian-inspired shape raised on four stubby feet, the melon-shaped, silver-rimmed lobed body cast and chiselled in typical Komai silver and gold relief overlay, scattered with eight silver-outlined round or fan-shaped panels, each enclosing different scenes of kacho-ga (bird-and-flower), famous landmarks or legendary episodes, the upper section with (1) Three butterflies hovering among peonies (2) Kosekiko standing on a dragon offering the 'recovered shoe' (3) Two tsubame (swallows) in flight among trailing wisteria (4) Kinkakuji Temple; the lower section depicting (5) Sailing boats on the lake at Miyajima (6) A bugaku court dancer performing the kocho no mai A 'butterfly dance' (7) A kamakiri (praying mantis) among kuzu (kudzu vine) and flowering nadeshiko (pinks) and (8) Boats sailing towards the pine-tree lined shores at Miho no Matsubara, Mount Fuji in the distance, reserved on a typical Komai dense ground of kiku-mon (chrysanthemum crests) interwoven among karakusa ('Chinese grasses') or on a ground of converging narrow bands of repeated textile, keyfret, diaper and other geometric patterns, formal foliate motifs and stylised bats, the tall, conical lobed cover also inlaid with vertical bands of the same lavish decoration to match the body, surmounted by a finial in the form of overlapping lotus leaves, the feet similarly inlaid in gold with floral medallions, signed on the base in gold nunome-zogan in seal form Saikyo no ju Komai sei on a silver eight-petal panel inlaid in silver numome-zogan with repeated geometric and fragmented rinzu (textile-weave) patterns; with double wood storage boxes, the outer box black-lacquered. 26.5cm x 22cm (10 3/8in x 8 5/8in). (4).
Footnotes:
Around 1873 Komai Otojiro, son of a sword-fitting maker from Higo Province, started selling his richly decorated wares in the international port of Kobe. Before long, his chargers, vases, and other items of iron overlaid with gold and silver, sold under an exclusive contract with the Ikeda Company, were in international demand and by 1881 he was wealthy enough to buy a mansion in Kyoto. Following a difficult trading period during which he was forced to work as Ikeda's employee, in 1894 Komai set up a business catering to wealthy European and American travellers and began to promote his wares at international expositions under his own name. He retired in 1906 and was succeeded by his son Komai Seibei (1883–1970)

Saikyo ('Western Capital') was an alternative name for Kyoto (corresponding to Tokyo, 'Eastern Capital') widely used during the early part of the Meiji era.