Late Ming dynasty, China (17th century)
Donated by Satō Kiyoharu
This is a celadon porcelain incense burner, of a type called “Shichikan Caledon Porcelain” fired in Longquan kilns in Zhejiang Province. It copies the form of a three-legged bronze vessel as used in ancient China, and the strings on its lid include a mythical lion playing with a ball, known as a tamatori shishi.
Such tamatori shishi carry a meaning of the perpetuation of one’s family line, and the fur between the two playing lions, male and female, represent a ball, and this ball of fur is said to give birth to a prodigious lion cub.
This item was passed down to the Satō family of Sakata via Katō Kageshige, a steward, who had it in his possession as a legacy item from the Sakai family, which ruled the former Shōnai Domain. The box has the warehouse designation of “2nd seal, no. 2.”