Height: 38cms
Date: 1868 - 1912
£POA - What does POA mean?
Product Code: KPME52
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A rare and unusual pair of Meiji Period (1868-1912) Japanese bronze koro with multimetal decoration of three of the most iconic Japanese mythical creatures.
Three dragons are wound around the slender legs of the koro
Baku holding golden rings in their trunks form the handles
The koro themselves are decorated with an image of a hybrid mythical being resembling a wyvern with a kirin’s head and tail comprised of 12 plumes, suggesting it has reached a great age. This ‘wyvern’ appears to be chasing a golden vase with a baku shaped lid.
Crying Kirin sit atop the lids
The koro stand on fine bronze bases resembling wooden stands.
Dragon
Dragons are hugely significant in Asian culture. Known as the Ryu or Tatsu in Japan, they are closely related to the Chinese Long and Korean Yong. Like all Asian dragons they lack wings and are serpent-like in form. The Japanese dragons rarely fly and usually reside in or near the sea and other bodies of water.
Japanese dragons have positive symbolism. They are good and represent wisdom, generosity and they are portrayed as using their powers to help mankind. (Unlike the Dragons of Western mythology.)
Generally you can tell a Chinese dragon from a Japanese by counting the toes, a Chinese having four or five and a Japanese having three.
Baku
The baku is a mythical Japanese chimeric creature which loosely resembles an elephant, it is said they eat nightmares and protect from pestilence and evil.
Kirin
The Kirin (Qilin in Chinese) is a mythical chimerical creature common in artworks and legends across most of East Asia, it it believed to have originated in China around the 5th century BC. The Japanese Kirin resembles a deer with long slender legs and horns, it is said that they are peaceful creatures with great power, they are able to walk on grass without disturbing a single blade, and they only appear at times when there is peace in the world. When the giraffe was first brought to Japan it greatly resembled the Kirin and so the Japanese word of giraffe is kirin.
Wyvern
A wyvern is a two legged type of dragon more commonly seen in Western art and legends, there are some depictions of two legged dragon like creatures in Japanese artwork, sometimes appearing as chimeric animals.
Koro
A koro is an incense burner, they can be made from may different materials, ceramic and bronze being very popular. Many were made to be used but the form was also used as the basis for more decorative artworks.
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We are members of BADA, LAPADA and CINOA, working closely with these associations and we are very proud of our reputation as one of the most established, valued and trusted dealers of Japanese and Chinese Art and Antiques in the industry.
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