{"product_id":"large-sumida-gawa-mug-with-applied-sennin-figure-signed-ryosai-inoue-ryosai-workshop-meiji-taisho-period","title":"Large Sumida Gawa Mug with Applied Sennin Figure, Signed Ryosai — Inoue Ryosai Workshop, Meiji \/ Taisho Period","description":"Substantial Sumida ware (隅田焼 \/ Sumida-gawa) mug, Japan, late Meiji to Taishō period, c. 1900-1920, signed Ryōsai (良斎) and attributed to the workshop of Inoue Ryōsai (井上良斎) — one of the most celebrated producers of Sumida ware.\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\nDark-bodied earthenware, heavily ribbed and wheel-thrown, finished with the characteristic matte black Sumida slip (rather than the orange-red slip seen on other examples from the kiln). The upper third and interior are covered in a dramatic flambé glaze ranging through aubergine-black, amber, iron-yellow and plum-red, with irregular drips running down the ribbed body — a kiln effect prized by the Ryōsai workshop. \u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\nThe hand-pulled handle, modeled as a gnarled branch, is covered in the same flowing amber-black flambé glaze. The applied decoration combines modeled earthenware (face, hands, feet) with porcelain fragments in underglaze cobalt blue and white (robe, jar).\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\nA sennin (仙人), most likely Chōkarō Sennin (張果老), the Daoist immortal — depicted as a bald elderly figure with a deeply lined, expressive face modeled with remarkable realism, leaning over the rim of the mug. He wears a porcelain robe with blue-and-white floral motifs and grasps a large porcelain blue-and-white sake jar or gourd, resting on an amber-glazed support suggesting a rock or cloud. The figure is fully sculpted in high relief, his head rising above the lip of the mug.\u003cbr\u003e\nHallmark: applied porcelain cartouche on the reverse of the body, painted in underglaze cobalt blue with the cursive signature Ryōsai (良斎), characteristic of the Inoue Ryōsai workshop.\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\nDimensions: H 12.5 cm, D 8 cm. Weight 440 g.\u003cbr\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\nCondition: honest age-related wear. Light surface abrasion and minor glaze nibbles to the ribbed ridges. The sennin and jar are intact, with no visible restoration. Glazed interior; holds liquid.\u003cbr\u003e\n","brand":"Gillers Antiques","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":62884403020106,"sku":null,"price":250.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1066\/5351\/6106\/files\/il_fullxfull.7979998429_18x7_3d12da80-150e-4464-8fbc-ae2f517d8c18.jpg?v=1785914654","url":"https:\/\/gillersantiques.com\/products\/large-sumida-gawa-mug-with-applied-sennin-figure-signed-ryosai-inoue-ryosai-workshop-meiji-taisho-period","provider":"Gillers Antiques","version":"1.0","type":"link"}