198 - A RARE DARK BROWN- AND TURQUOISE-GLAZED STONEWARE ‘SKELETONS BATTLING A GIANT CRAB’ VASE

A RARE DARK BROWN- AND TURQUOISE-GLAZED STONEWARE ‘SKELETONS BATTLING A GIANT CRAB’ VASE Japan, early 20th century, Meiji (1868-1912) to Taisho period (1912-1926) Finely potted, the ovoid body rising from a short, straight foot through gently sloping, tiered shoulders to a slender neck with a thickened, rounded rim. The exterior is covered in a dark brown glaze with deeply carved, striated textures, animated by an extraordinary scene of three enameled skeletons engaged in a comical battle against a giant crab. One skeleton raises a long stalk as though brandishing a battle standard, while the crab seizes another by the foot with one of its powerful pincers. The creature's protruding eyes are picked out in vivid turquoise, echoing the lustrous turquoise glaze covering the neck. The recessed base inscribed yonju-ichi [forty-one], possibly a kiln or production mark. HEIGHT 22.3 cm Condition: Two chips to the foot ring. Otherwise excellent condition. The delightfully irreverent design of the present vase transforms a macabre subject into a spirited parody of heroic combat. The three animated skeletons, one brandishing a stalk like a makeshift standard, recall the humorous skeletal processions and dances of late Edo and Meiji-period art, most notably those depicted by Kawanabe Kyosai (1831-1889), whose Dancing Skeletons in the British Museum exemplifies this playful treatment of death. As in Kyosai's work, the skeletons retain distinctly human gestures and bravado, their grotesque appearance rendered all the more amusing by the theatrical absurdity of their predicament. The crab introduces a further layer of wit. In Japanese tradition, crabs were associated with the warrior class, particularly through the legend of the heikegani, believed to embody the spirits of samurai who perished at the Battle of Dan-no-ura in 1185. The improbable struggle between the formidable crab and the skeletons may thus be understood as a satirical inversion of martial valor: an unyielding adversary confronts warriors already claimed by death. Beneath the humor lies a playful reflection on courage, impermanence, and the ultimate futility of heroic resistance.