AN EXCEPTIONALLY RARE INLAID IRON MINIATURE KODANSU (CABINET) WITH TURTLES AND CRANES Japan, Meiji period (1868-1912)

Superbly decorated in gold and silver takazogan and hirazogan, the hinged door and short sides with ‘floating’ turtles framed by a stream and aquatic plants below and thin clouds above, the cover with two cranes flying in the sky as well as the setting sun and further clouds, the cover with a fitted gilt silver handle and the door with a silver knop, opening to reveal three silver drawers with iron front panels with silver-mounted handles and inlaid in the same manner as the exterior with turtles and carved with water currents, the interior of the door with a gold plate engraved with a man surrounded by ducks in a barren forest.

SIZE 9.6 x 9.3 x 6.4 cm
WEIGHT 851.5 g

Condition: Very good condition with minor wear and casting irregularities.
Provenance: French private collection.

While miniature kodansu (display cabinets) were commonly made during the Meiji period, the most popular examples crafted from lacquer, inlaid ivory, or damascened iron, no comparable examples in sparsely inlaid iron are recorded in private or public collections, making this exceptionally well-crafted piece extremely rare.