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A RARE YELLOW- AND GREEN-SPLASHED SETO WARE TEA CADDY (CHAIRE), EDO PERIOD Japan, c. 17th-18th century. Finely potted, the globular body, rising from a flat base, with high, rounded shoulders surmounted by a slightly tapered neck with a thick-lipped rim. The surface covered entirely in dark brown glaze, suffused with a large ochre-yellow and moss-green splash, exhibiting overall a glossy, unctuous feel. The caddy fitted with a circular ivory lid, centered with a knop finial. (2) Provenance: From The Sam and Myrna Myers Collection, Paris, France. Acquired between circa 1965-2012. Condition: Very good condition with surface wear and firing-inherent irregularities, including a small glaze hairline to the neck. Expected traces of use to the interior. The ivory cover small age cracks and a visible chip. Important Notice: The ivory lid is not included in this offer. However, it can be shipped as a gift to the buyer of the lot, but only within the European Union. Weight: 129.3 g Dimensions: Height 7.8 cm Seto ware is a type of Japanese pottery produced in and around the city of Seto, Aichi Prefecture. Seto was home to one of the Six Ancient Kilns of Japan during the medieval period, with its distinctive ceramic production dating back to the thirteenth century, in the Kamakura period. Local potters drew inspiration from Chinese ceramics of the Song dynasty imported to Japan, including green celadon porcelains and dark brown tenmoku wares. It is believed that the earliest Seto ceramics may have originated from unsuccessful attempts to replicate Chinese celadons. Only later, during the Momoyama and early Edo periods, were Seto wares produced with their characteristic brown iron glazes, fired at high temperatures to achieve their distinctive glossy surfaces. The most notable feature of Seto ware is its extensive use of glazes. Seto was the only production center in Japan during the Kamakura period to employ glazes, elevating its ceramics to the status of luxury objects. The local clay, a high-quality kaolin and porcelain stone, turned white when fired and provided an ideal foundation for colored glazes. Therefore, this glazed pottery had a particularly significant influence on the development of bowls used in the Japanese tea ceremony. Chaire is the Japanese term used to denote tea caddies, ordinarily of ceramic, employed for the storage of thick tea during the ritualized Japanese tea ceremony. Introduced to Japan in the thirteenth century, the most esteemed chaire were produced in Southern Song and Yuan China, reflecting a cultivated fascination with the exoticism and cultural prestige of Chinese ceramics. Chaire are customarily enclosed in a bag, or ‘shifuku’, fashioned from exquisitely refined materials such as high-quality silk, gold brocade, damask, or the striped silk known as ‘kantou’, imported from China, and presented in the tearoom. From the Momoyama period, indigenous production of chaire emerged in Japanese kilns. Literature comparison: Compare a related iron brown-glazed Seto ware tea caddy (chaire), 7 cm high, in the Smithsonian National Museum of Asian Art, accession number F2021.3.2a-bb. Compare a related iron brown-glazed Oribe ware tea caddy (chaire), Edo period, 17th century, in the Tokyo National Museum, institutional control number G-1186. Auction result comparison: Type: Related Auction: Christie’s London, 13 November 2002, lot 258 Price: GBP 1,673 or approx. EUR 4,500 converted and adjusted for inflation at the time of writing Description: A Seto ware chaire (tea caddy), Edo period, 17th-18th century Expert remark: Compare the related form, firing technique, and color of the glaze. Note the similar size (7.9 cm).