A NANBAN LACQUER SHRINE MOMOYAMA PERIOD, 16TH CENTURY |

the rectangular shrine, with two hinged doors opening to reveal an inner European gilt frame containing a picture of Christ inset into a shallow box form with slightly domed top and fitted loop fixing, decorated in gold and brown hiramaki-e and inset in mother-of-pearl on a black roironuri ground, the front of the doors with cranes among wisteria and maple trees, flowers and grasses, the reverse with grape vine and scrolling tendril, the edge of the box frame with nanban tendril, the reverse and the interior of the box, black lacquer overall, the inset European frame in gilt, containing an oil painting of Christ, glazed, the metal fittings engraved with chrysanthemum

As can be seen from the illustrations, the front of the right hand door panel has a slight crack to the lacquer at the top and one piece of mother-of-pearl lacking from a flower. The reverse of the doors have slight chips to the outer edges and a small area of lacquer-crackle to the bottom right hand side. The European gilt frame with early glass has some re-gilding. The frame removable, revealing the portrait of Christ beneath. The painting with some paint loss to the upper edges, cracks and re-touching. The painting has an earlier work beneath as shown by the x-ray. The sides with cracking around the joints, and some lacquer loss. The right hand side looking from the reverse, there is a small area of wood-frame damaged and the back has two vertical cracks and small pin-holes early repairs. The black lacquer with some lacquer loss, dents and scratches. The base with wear, along the edges and the corners, a central pin-hole with slight lacquer-loss around it. The copper-engraved fittings with some small retaining pins lacking. Overall for the condition age and use of the object it is in good condition.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

When Francis Xavier, one of the founders of the Society of Jesus (the Jesuits) arrived in Japan in 1549 to commence his missionary work of converting the Japanese to Christianity, he brought with him several Italian paintings of religious subjects of Christ, the Virgin Mary and various saints. These were originally intended to decorate the various churches which he hoped to construct, but as time went by he realised that was an increasingly strong demand from local converts for copies of these religious images to assist them in their devotions, and at the same time these images were extremely useful for spreading farther afield the knowledge of Christianity. As Francis Xavier was deemed to be a representative of the King of Portugal he received a friendly welcome despite the misgivings of the local governor and his teaching of Catholicism met with great initial success. In a short while the demand for hanging lacquer shrines and portable lecterns exceeded the supply, and the Jesuits commissioned further works from the Jesuit Curia in Rome but, owing to the long time gap, in many cases several years, between the original request and its subsequent delivery in Japan the they were obliged to commission local Japanese artists to produce copies of the paintings and at the same time to arrange for their hanging lacquer cases to be made by local artisans in Kyoto. As a consequence the majority of these oil paintings on copper or wooden panels show a European stylistic influence, whereas the lacquer cases are decorated with a mingling of European and Japanese Kano style. At the same time a Neapolitan Jesuit, Brother Giovanni Niccolò (1563-1626) who had arrived in Nagasaki in 1583, set up the Jesuit Art Academy in Kyushu which became an active centre for many Chinese and Japanese students.

Very few of these pieces remain to-day as Christianity was banned by the Tokugawa Shogunate in 1620, the missionaries were expelled and a long campaign of execution and persecution against both those missionaries who remained illegally and all their converts was carried out and virtually every item of Christian significance was systematically rooted out and destroyed. In fact the practice of Christianity was totally banned until the Meiji (1868-1912) period. As a consequence these portable Christian shrines are extremely rare and only about twenty are currently known to have survived.

The existence of such Nanban (‘Southern Barbarian’) shrines was first recognized by Martha Boyer in 1951 (Boyer, Japanese Export Lacquer [Copenhagen, 1951], p. xxvii, pl.23). Subsequent research by the Japanese lacquer scholars Okada Jo and Arakawa Hirozaku, as well as by Toshio Watanabe, Haino Akio and Oliver Impey subsequently discovered further examples. For a similar example now in the Kyushu National Museum collection, see Sezon Museum of Art and Shizuoka Prefectural Museum of Art, eds, ‘Porutogaru to Nanban bunka’ ten: Mezase toho no kuniguni [‘Portugal and Nanban culture’ exhibition: Via Orientals] (Tokyo, 1993), p.206, no.184 and go to the Kyushu National Museum website (Japanese): http:/www.kyuhaku.jp/collection/collection_gl01.html. For another shrine see Oliver Impey, Japanese Export Lacquer 1580-1850 (Amsterdam, 2005), p.186, fig.445.