A carved cinnabar box and cover, signed 'Yang Mao Zao'

Yuan dynasty, 14th century
China

width: 9.7 cm

The shallow incense box is of flattened circular form – the cover carved with a design of a single peony flower and a closed bud amongst leaves, against an ochre ground; the lower half is carved with a single band of closed peony buds and leaves around a circular foot and concave well. The carving is flat, and the design naturalistic and well spaced out in typical Yuan style; the lacquer is built up into a number of two colour layers – the surface with a rich patina. The interior and base are lacquered chocolate brown, and the maker’s mark is neatly incised in vertical characters at the centre edge of the base.

similar example
‘Carved Lacquer’, The Tokugawa Art Museum, Nezu Institute of Fine Arts, 1984 – figure 96. This circular incense box (of deeper form) is also carved with a single peony flower and signed Yang Mao Zao; it is to be found in the Shoju-raigo-ji in Shiga prefecture.