Early Edo period (Late 17th century)
Donated by the Homma family
Kutani ware produced from the mid-17th and early 18th century in the Enuma District of the Kaga Domain is called “Ko-Kutani” (old Kutani ware). Unlike classical five-color Kutani ware, which uses green, blue, yellow, purple and red, “aode,” or “green-style” Kutani ware eschews red, and uses two or three of the remaining four colors to fill the entire surface.
This large, shallow, green-style old Kutani bowl is an exercise in vividly contrasting colors, auspicious for representing a bountiful harvest. The lotus leaves and grapes are rendered in green and purple; the outer rim has a yellow fish roe pattern in the background, while the central part of the plate has a yellow fan wave pattern.
The reverse side is covered with green glaze, with a pattern of clouds resembling spiraling whirlpools, and a double square ‘fuku’ inscription on the base.