Japanese Arita Coffee Pot and Cover with Later Gilt Metal Mounts, C.1680, Edo Period

Ref: W310

Japanese Arita coffee pot and cover with later gilt metal mounts, c.1680, Edo period (1603-1868), the tapering body supported on three feet and decorated in underglaze blue with ho-ho birds perched on rockwork and flying among branches of chrysanthemum and peony, the lid and strap handle decorated with karakusa scroll.

Dimensions:

Height: 29.5 cm. (11 5/8 in.)

Condition:

Old restoration neatly done

Notes:

A similar coffee pot can be found in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art (79.2.176a,b); for another similar example see Volker, T., The Japanese Porcelain Trade of the Dutch East India Company after 1683, pl. IV. Coffee drinking, which underwent a surge in popularity in Europe during the late 17th and 18th centuries, required new kinds of drinking utensils. Such coffee pots would have been commissioned especially by Dutch merchants for export, with European models provided for Japanese craftsmen, unfamiliar with European vessel shapes, to work from.