As of yet, I have neglected writing about tansu that contain a specific traditional feature, the Bo (locking bar). This has not been due to my lack of interest in this particular feature, more just waiting for a piece that contains multiple aspects that I find worthy of discussing. Well, I finally found one with this stacking clothes chest.  Traditionally, brides took their personal tansu to the new husband’s family home, and I think that’s what we are looking at here.

The bo dansu is one of the oldest styles of tansu, probably due to the fact that it required the least amount of kanagu (hardware) to secure everything. Now in my uneducated opinion, I believe the seller of this piece is right in stating that it is from Yamagata Prefecture. One telltale feature is the warabite handles and the keyaki (zelkova) drawer fronts. I think this would be from around the mid to late Meiji era, because in earlier pieces, the handles were set against single small zagane (escutcheons) rather than full toshi-zagane (backplates) which this piece has. Furthermore, I think we can pinpoint the region of manufacture to the Shonai plain due to the style of the obikanagu (sash hardware) that are on the bo. Obikanagu were more than just decoration, they also added strength to the locking bar as well as help keep the wood from warping. Cool, huh? Well I could go on forever about hardware or how maybe thats bengara stain under the laquer on the sash hardware etc… Let’s just look at the pretty pictures instead.

If I had a zashiki or dei (main entertaining tatami room), this is one piece I would definitely want to put in it. An amazing Sendai tansu with beautiful hardware. This was definitely a showpiece for an affluent merchant to display while he was entertaining guests.

Although I believe this to actually represent the fourth stage of Sendai evolution (late Meiji or early Taisho) due to the fact that is a stacking piece, the floriate button on the lockplate is non existant, meaning that it has a double action lock (urajo), it has mokko style handles which replaced the earlier warabite style, and the lockplates are also embossed and incised with beatiful depictions of what I think are shishi (lion-dogs of protection).

Exhibiting a nice Kijiro laquer finish over a nice reddish stain on the Keyaki wood, this piece definitely presents an impressive display of craftsmanship.

Another nice thing I would like to point out is the corner hardware (which I believe is called herikanagu). Nicely incised, this also points out how with the introduction of sheet metal at the end of the Meiji era, the craftsmen were able to spend more time on the decoration instead of just on fabrication of hardware, therefore adding to the aesthetic qualities of the pieces. And hey, if I was a wealthy merchant that had to hide my wealth due to the Edo era edicts, once the Meiji restoration hit, I would have jumped on all this ornamentation as well.

I saw this tansu on eBay and wanted to talk about it due to the fact that it depicts another regional style perfectly. Tansu production came late to Nihonmatsu (literally, two pine trees) and the area was primarily active in the mid-Meiji era. But what they lacked for in timing, they made up with uniqueness, as they were basically uninfluenced in design by their tansu producing neighbors, Yonezawa, Sendai, and Niigata.

Nihonmatsu tansu are some of the largest clothing chests made, with a typical size of over 43 inches wide and heights sometimes over 47 inches. Always a chest on chest design with the primary woods being Sugi (Japanese Cedar) for the carcass and Keyaki (Japanese Elm) for the drawer faces (this example listed the drawers as being Matsu (pine)). These chests typically had Warabite (bracken hand) type handles with intricate incised toshi-zagane (backplates), this depicted piece also has Sakura (cherry blossom) and Matsu protective plates (I don’t know the Japanese name for this type of handle protective plates, so if any of you out there do, please contact me).

Another distinctive characteristic of the Nihonmatsu tansu was the unique jomae (lockplate) with double kikuza-tegakejo (floriate button) latches as depicted here. One button was a sliding latch (karajo), and the other was a single action lock (omotejo) requiring a key, and could be used separately. This example shows a typical Nihonmatsu sliding lock cover of brass depicting the lucky Daikoku’s mallet (Daikoku is a god that is associated with wealth and agriculture) as well as some brass depictions of koi and a money bag at the center.

Tansu from this region had two types of finishes (nuri). Kijiro, which was a laborious process of multiple layers of clear lacquer (urushi) and polishings over a natural or stained-wood surface (depicted here), or Tame nuri which was an opaque lacquer which would hide the open grained wood and was equally laborious to apply.

One last unique attribute to Nihonmatsu tansu was the atypical use of the carcass wood for the interior drawer faces in the door compartment, as opposed to the usual consistent use of the same wood for all the drawer faces (hidden or not) found on all other types of tansu.

Te Kagami are hand mirrors that most of you have seen depicted in Geisha houses when the Geishas were putting on their makeup. They usually had their own bako (box, I’m not sure if there is a distinct word for this compartment so I’ll go with box, as seen in the first picture) and were set on a little stand so the ladies could use them. Primarily made out of bronze that was highly polished on one side (see picture for example of reflection), and highly figurative on the reverse. I don’t know a whole lot about these but of course I like their historical use and value. What I do know is that these were prized possessions, with a historical importance. The Yata No Kagami (the sacred mirror) is one part of the three sacred treasures of Japan, the Imperial Regalia (Sanshyu no Jingi). The regalia consists of the Kusunagi (sword), the Yasakani no magatama (jewel, or necklace of jewels) and the Yata no Kagami (mirror). They all have their own significance but the mirror represented honesty or wisdom. I think this meaning is kind of perverted in the use by Geisha because the makeup they wore represented an ideal woman, and if you needed a lot of makeup to become that ideal woman, how much of one were you before (but that’s a completely separate discussion). The reason why the mirror is included in the regalia is that it was hung from a tree to lure Amaterasu (the sun Goddess) out of a cave, and she is who the divine family are direct descendants of (generally speaking, this site is about antiques and not religion and lineology, I could go into that in depth but this is not the place). Basically the mirror was important upon many levels, and if you are into collecting, I think a fine example of a kagami set in a stand resting upon a nice Isho-dansu (clothing chest) would be a beautiful arrangements for your home. Look into them.

Up for auction is a beautiful Sendai-style clothing chest. This piece is unrestored, which in some ways is how I like them. A rich patina is aquired by use and age and I sometimes prefer this condition over a heavily sanded and restained piece. This could use some TLC but otherwise looks real good. All the ironwork is present, and it looks like it has the oblong wooden nails in the joinery, which is indicative of early Meiji Era tansu manufacture (but most likely this is mid to late Meiji due to style evolution). With the Mokko style handles, this piece is textbook Sendai-style. Estimated sale price between 500.00 and 700.00.