Antique Japanese Satsuma Ware Coffee Pot Bijin Figures Wisteria Shishi Finial Meiji

Japanese Satsuma Ware Coffee Pot Bijin Figures Wisteria Shishi Finial Meiji

Japan, Meiji period, c. 1868–1912

Approx. 8 in. H (20 cm); Weight:

A generously proportioned Satsuma ware (薩摩焼) coffee pot or hot water jug, the wide globular body covered in the characteristic warm ivory crackle glaze and decorated in the polychrome overglaze enamel and gilt style that made Meiji Satsuma one of the most celebrated Japanese export ceramics of its era. The base bears a fan-shaped (ōgi, 扇) iron-red mark with workshop characters — a Satsuma export workshop designation consistent with quality Meiji production.

The surface is organized as a freely arranged composition of shaped reserve panels on a warm gold-tan crackle ground. The principal bijin-ga (美人画) panel depicts court ladies and a child in a breezy coastal landscape beneath a wind-swept pine, with a blue-roofed pavilion and distant water rendered in soft blue, green, and amber — the figures individualized with fine facial detail and elaborately patterned robes. A second large panel presents a sweeping wisteria (藤, fuji) tree in lavender-blue, its cascading clusters reaching across the white reserve ground. A male figure in formal court or Noh dress occupies a third panel, his robes worked in gold lattice and iron-red. Between panels, large gold fern or palm frond forms and scattered iron-red disc roundels animate the warm ground. The long angled spout is finished in iron-red with gold feather/fern detailing. The domed lid carries polychrome floral cartouches on the crackle ground and is crowned by an applied modeled shishi finial in iron-red.

Condition: Good overall; crackle glaze and enamel decoration intact. The spout tip carries a chip, visible in close inspection and reflected in price. Some staining to the lid seat and interior neck consistent with use and age. Minor wear to foot ring. Lid present and fitting.

A lively and well-decorated Meiji Satsuma export pot — the shishi finial, wisteria panel, and bijin figure painting together represent the style at its most characteristic and commercially appealing.