15 - An incised 'Tsuikoku' black lacquer plate, with 'Guri' pattern design A large Yuan-dynasty tsuikoku (carved black lacquer) plate. Thick layers of black lacquer have been deeply carved across the entire surface to produce a flowing guri scroll pattern. The forceful knife marks and the strong sense of depth created by shadow harmonise with the bold design animating the lustrous black ground — a piece that is at once imposing and supremely accomplished.

An incised 'Tsuikoku' black lacquer plate, with 'Guri' pattern design A large Yuan-dynasty tsuikoku (carved black lacquer) plate. Thick layers of black lacquer have been deeply carved across the entire surface to produce a flowing guri scroll pattern. The forceful knife marks and the strong sense of depth created by shadow harmonise with the bold design animating the lustrous black ground — a piece that is at once imposing and supremely accomplished. The Kikkawa family, into which Mōri Motonari’s second son Motoharu was adopted, formed with the Kobayakawa one of the “two rivers” (Ryōkawa) that supported the Mōri main line. After the Battle of Sekigahara, Kikkawa Hiroie was granted a fief at Iwakuni in Suō Province (present-day Yamaguchi Prefecture). The family has preserved a wide range of art and cultural treasures, including swords (the National Treasure tachi signed “Tametsugu,” known as “Kitsunegasaki”); armour; tea utensils (the Ashiya-gama kettle known as the “Josui-gama”); old documents and classical texts (the Important Cultural Property Genkō Shakusho); and portraits of Kikkawa Motoharu and Kikkawa Hiroie. H: 3.4cm D: 32.5cm With a crack. Wooden box Formerly in the collection of the Kikkawa family, daimyo of Iwakuni domain, Suō province. China, Yuan Dynasty