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Source Description
Writing boxes were indispensible personal possessions for the literate of medieval Japan. Beyond containing the tools for artistic expression and communication such as an ink stone, writing brushes, and a water dropper, writing boxes often featured scenes from classical literature or symbolic motifs rendered in a wide array of complex lacquer techniques.
Scholar Source Context
Document identity
localId
144288
label
Writing Box (Suzuribako) with Design of Pine, Camellia, and Bamboo (base)
core
obj
dtoType
object
pageCount
1
Source metadata
id
144288
contentType
object
title
Writing Box (Suzuribako) with Design of Pine, Camellia, and Bamboo (base)
description
Writing boxes were indispensible personal possessions for the literate of medieval Japan. Beyond containing the tools for artistic expression and communication such as an ink stone, writing brushes, and a water dropper, writing boxes often featured scenes from classical literature or symbolic motifs rendered in a wide array of complex lacquer techniques.
date
1400s
rights
CC0
rightsUri
CC0
language
en
wikidata
Q79921269
genreSpecific
Lacquer
imageCount
1
source
import
dimensionsRaw
Overall: 24.2 x 22.6 cm (9 1/2 x 8 7/8 in.)
cul
Japan, Muromachi period (1392–1573)
accession
1969.124.a
Source extras
tec
Lacquered wood with gold and silver sprinkled powder (maki-e), stone, and metal
tombstone
Writing Box (Suzuribako) with Design of Pine, Camellia, and Bamboo (base) (松椿竹蒔絵硯箱), 1400s. Japan, Muromachi period (1392–1573). Lacquered wood with gold and silver sprinkled powder (maki-e), stone, and metal; overall: 24.2 x 22.6 cm (9 1/2 x 8 7/8 in.). The Cleveland Museum of Art, John L. Severance Fund, 1969.124.a
titleInOriginalLanguage
松椿竹蒔絵硯箱
collection
Japanese Art
didYouKnow
The metal water dropper inside the box above the ink stone also has pine and camellia motifs.
citations
citation
“Art of Asia Recently Acquired by American Museums, 1969.” <em>Archives of Asian Art</em> 24 (1970): 86–117.
page_number
Mentioned: p. 107
citation
Lee, Sherman E. “The Year in Review for 1969.” <em>The Bulletin of the Cleveland Museum of Art</em> 57, no. 1 (January 1970): 2–51.
page_number
Mentioned: p. 51, no. 238
citation
The Cleveland Museum of Art. <em>Handbook of the Cleveland Museum of Art/1978</em>. Cleveland, OH: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1978.
page_number
Reproduced: p. 378
creditline
John L. Severance Fund
updatedAt
2026-05-29 07:24:21.901000
sourceId
144288
dept
Japanese Art
coll
Japanese Art
med
Lacquered wood with gold and silver sprinkled powder (maki-e), stone, and metal
thumbnail_url
image_url
Single page context
seq
1
pageIndex
0
type
photo
mediaId
2d55938dae5f4de2