MEIJI PERIOD (LATE 19TH CENTURY), ATTRIBUTED TO HASHIMOTO ICHIZO I (1817-1882)

This may be the work of Hashimoto Ichizo I (1817-1882), a lacquer artist well known for his simulation of dry bamboo. He began his career making lacquer scabbards for Japanese swords. In the 1870s, after swords were officially prohibited, he began to make works of art in lacquer. For another lacquer vase in bamboo design by Ichizo dated 1880, in the Tokyo National Museum, see Tokyo National Museum et al., Seiki no saiten: Bankoku hakurankai no bijutsu Arts of East and West from World Expositions (Tokyo: NHK, NHK Promotion Co., Ltd.; Nihon Keizai Shinbun, 2004), pl. I-114.