Namikawa Sosuke (1847-1910) - For the Shippo Kaisha
A pair of large cloisonné enamel vases each finely worked with numerous stems of lily, hydrangea, iris, peony, leaves and a large seed pod, all on a pale blue ground, the shoulder and foot with formal borders.
Unsigned
Height: 53cm
Meiji period, circa 1890
See footnote below
The design of these vases is repeated on two further pairs by Namikawa Sosuke. Each of these have no formal borders around the neck and foot, indicating having probably been made at a slightly later date, sold in the Sothebys Easton Neston auction, 18th May 2005, lot 697.
The second pair in the Seikado Bunko Art Museum, Tokyo, illustrated Watanabe Seitei, The Splendour of Flower and Bird Paintings, Yuji Yamashita and Ryo Furuta, Heibonsha Co. Ltd. 2022, p.78.
The seed pod design is remarkably similar to that on a further vase and painting in our collection, as seen below, the design taken directly from his three volume book of designs, Seitei Kacho Gafu, 1890-91, illustrated below. This would suggest that he started signing his work shortly after this date.
