Japanese
Incense Box with Incense, 19th century - 20th century
Lacquer box with gilded accents and cloth interior; incense wrapped in printed and gold-flecked paper, 4 x 12.4 x 27.8 cm (1 9/16 x 4 7/8 x 10 15/16 in.)
This brown, wooden incense box contains four packs of incense sticks, each wrapped in paper. The top of the lacquered box contains a border that is slightly lowered and features gilding along the edge, the top of the box is then raised above this border and also features gold trim. On the riased top are two gilded Japanese characters in a vertical line, featured on the upper center of the cover. The bottom of the box is of the same material and the interior is lined with yellow cloth. The box contains thick sheaths of incense wrapped in printed paper. From our left to right, there is a deep pink sheath. Next to it is another deep pink sheath with one yellow panel at the top of the pack and one green panel in the center of the pack, both containing ink printed Japanese characters. Continuing to our right is a thinner pale pink sheath with a green and white floral pattern, with a panel of printed Japanese characters towards the bottom end of the sheath. Last in the row is a white sheath, slightly yellowed with age, with one deep pink panel at the top and one yellow panel at the bottom both printed with Japanese characters. This last sheath also contains a red-bordered label with the inscriptions CV7V / BCVC and a blue-bordered label with the numeral two.
Macknight Room
Commentary
Isabella Stewart Gardner kept meticulous records of many of her acquisitions. In keeping with this legacy, object information is continually being reviewed, updated, and enriched in order to give greater access to the collection.