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Box: O.4-1969

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Current Location: In storage

Maker(s)

Maker: Unknown

Entities

Categories

Description

Clothes box with bamboo, pine and prunus. Lacquer on wooden core, inlaid with mother of pearl. Choson Dynasty. This box which is covered with black-lacquered shark-skin and lined with paper, is completely enclosed by its cover, which reaches down to the base. The corners are protected by iron fittings. The reddish-brown lacquer is inlaid with mother of pearl. The top is divided into three zones, which are decorated, respectively, with a crane among bamboo, a bird's nest in a pine tree, and another crane flying above a prunus tree. The sides are inlaid with a composite flower-scroll. Where the lacquer is missing the underdrawing of the design in black ink is revealed on the wooden core.

Notes

History note: Bought from Bluett & Sons 1969, who bought it from London Gallery Ltd., Tokyo 1968

Legal notes

Bought with the Cunliffe Fund

Measurements and weight

Height: 10.7 cm
Length: 66 cm
Width: 35.9 cm

Acquisition and important dates

Method of acquisition: Bought (1969-05-29) by Bluett & Sons Ltd.

Dating

Choson Dynasty (1392 - 1910)
18th Century
1700 - 1800

Note

The box may have been used to hold official or ceremonial robes. Similar motifs frequently appear in Korean porcelain of the eighteenth century.

Components of the work

Lining composed of paper
Decoration composed of lacquer mother-of-pearl
Cover Over Box composed of sharkskin

Materials used in production

Wood (plant material)

References and bibliographic entries

Identification numbers

Accession number: O.4-1969
Primary reference Number: 16611

Audit data

Created: Saturday 6 August 2011 Updated: Friday 24 October 2025

Associated departments & institutions

Owner or interested party: The Fitzwilliam Museum
Associated department: Applied Arts

Citation for print

This record can be cited in the Harvard Bibliographic style using the text below:

The Fitzwilliam Museum (2025) "Box" Web page available at: https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/16611 Accessed: 2025-12-07 12:44:15

Citation for Wikipedia

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{{cite web|url=https://data.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/id/object/16611 |title=Box |author=The Fitzwilliam Museum|accessdate=2025-12-07 12:44:15|publisher=The University of Cambridge}}

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