Lithophane sake cup

Lithophane sake cup

Lithophane sake cup, Japanese art, women, Seven Lucky Gods (Shichifukujin)

Sake cup wiith Japanese writing, illustrated in color. An image of a woman's head impressed in the bottom of the cup (interior) becomes visible when the cup is held up to light.

Unknown

Kutani

Unknown [assumed to be c. 1950s]

Zhixuan Lin, Isabel Miller

Japanese

Sake cup

#1598

Vivid color with graphic images, Japanese kanji written in dark blue color

Very good condition. Some small scratches on bottom rim.

The relatively thick bottom of the cup tapers off toward the rim, which is thinner and more delicate (the cup flares outward). Good condition with clear and detailed graphic images and writing on the cup; the image of a woman's head on the cup's bottom (interior) is particularly clear when seen against natural light. Such Lithophane sake cups were commonly sent or brought home as souvenirs by World War II military service members, and the item could date from that era.

Porcelain

The cup's exterior is illustrated with a seated image of Jurōjin, the god of longevity, one of the Seven Lucky Gods (Shichifukujin) in Japanese mythology. There are Japanese kanji written vertically in cursive style inside the cup. The image of a woman's head with a traditional coiffure is impressed into the bottom of the cup. This image in such cups is commonly referred to as a "Single Geisha."

2" tall, 1" wide (bottom), 2" wide (top).

REJ Research Collection