Stag antler kagamibuta - Kokusai
circa 1870
A stag antler kagamibuta, the stag plate carved with a central medallion depicting a slender water dragon, its contorted body seeming to almost describe the bonji character for a dragon. The background is carved in an openwork stylised chrysanthemum petal design that continues on the bowl. A further medallion, with stylised pines, curls around the edge of the pierced bowl, while a third shows a stylised gentian motif. The himotoshi is ringed with a five-petalled floral design.
