Unsigned
Japan, 17^th century, Edo period (1615-1868)

Of rectangular form and oval section, finely lacquered in gold and silver with details in hiramaki-e and with kirigane flakes. Inlaid in silvered metal, Kyoyu is depicted kneeling at the dark waterfall and washing his ears while looking back over his shoulder towards Sofu; the hermit surrounded by rockwork with foliage and an overhanging pine branch. On the reverse, Sofu, surrounded by similar fauna, stands next to his recumbent ox looking towards Kyoyu in realization he can no longer wash his ox in the waterfall. The base and top with gold fundame. The interior cases of nashiji with gold fundame edges. With a florally incised metal ojime.

HEIGHT 6.1 cm, LENGTH 5.2 cm

Condition: Good condition with wear, signs of use, light rubbing, and minor chips to the corners of the cord runners.
Provenance: Galerie Pader, April 1943, Paris. Norton Gallery, 7 April 1959, Paris. Collection of Robert and Isabelle de Strycker, acquired from the above and thence by descent in the same family. The upper case with an old collector’s label, ‘L 574.’ Robert de Strycker (1903-1968) was a French engineer who specialized in metallurgy. He was a Stanford graduate, a professor at the University of Leuven, a director of the Institute of Metallurgy at the Université Catholique de Louvain, and one of the most influential members of the faculty of applied sciences. After World War II, he made large contributions to France’s post-war recovery. Robert and his wife Isabelle (1915-2010) first encountered Chinese art at the British Museum during a stay in London in the 1930s. Enamored with the style and beauty, they both decided to study and collect Chinese works of art. In 1938 they eventually began to build their collection, buying from Belgian, Parisian, and English dealers. They kept close contact with the famous English collector Sir Harry Garner (1891-1977) and noted Czech collector and expert Fritz Low-Beer (1906-1976). In 1964, the couple lent 174 objects from their collection to the Belgian city of Leuven’s museum for an exhibition titled Oude kunst in Leuvens Privébezit (‘Old Art in Private Collections in Leuven’), and in 1967 they lent around thirty Japanese objects to the Royal Museums of Art and History in Brussels for their exhibition Kunst van Japan im belgischen Privatverzameingen (‘Japanese Art in Belgian Private Collections’).

Gyo was among of the most highly esteemed of the ancient Chinese emperors. He abdicated the throne upon hearing the plight of the poor hermit named Xu You (Jap. Kyoyu). Upon abdicating the throne, Gyo offered his throne to the hermit, but after hearing the emperor’s offer, Xu You immediately traveled to Eisen River to wash his ears free of the temptation the emperor had filled them with. As he was washing out his ears the hermit Chao Fu (Jap. Sofu) met him, leading an ox he intended to bathe in the same waterfall. However, after speaking with Xu You, he realized he could not bathe the animal in such dirty waters, calmly moving on in search of cleaner water.

This story is often recounted as an illustration of the Daoist ideal of nothingness, but it was also popular among members of the military class as an anecdote with a wry, cynical attitude toward worldly success or failure; this same story subsequently was made a frequent theme of paintings done in the Chinese style.