Japanese
Three-Tiered Lunch Box (Bento-bako), late 19th century - early 20th century
Lacquered cedar
General admission for children 17 years and under is always free
This Japanese bento box, or lunch box, has three stacked sections covered in shiny red lacquer. The box has a larger lower rectangular box and two smaller similarly sized rectangular containers on top of it. The larger box holds two small ceramic tea bowls. The background glaze on these bowls is beige with dapples and irregularities of dark brown glaze. The botanical design on each cup is different although both are done in dark blue and black glazes. One bowl has a series of six petaled daisy-like flowers with yellow centers. The other has evergreen branches with needles. The whole red lunch box slides into a brown stained wood case with a bottom pull-out drawer. The case is open on one side and has a small metal handle and latch on the top. It is unpainted, so the wood grain is visible, but finished in lacquer to make it shiny. On the outer edges, the finish and stain are chipped.
Chinese Room
Commentary
Okakura Kakuzō (1862-1913) gave this lunch box to his friend Denman Waldo Ross (1853-1935) in 1908 when they were traveling together in Japan. Ross knew that Okakura and Isabella Stewart Gardner were close friends and so, after Okakura’s death, Ross gave the lunch box to Gardner in 1916.