Writing Box (suzuribako)

During the Edo period, the aesthetic appreciation for nature was reflected in everyday objects. Almost all living things, from flowers to animals to clouds, appeared in decorative motifs. This writing box (suzuribako) with a stag on the cover and maple leaves on the cover's interior is designed in the style of Rinpa (also Rimpa), a school of art whose name derives from Ogata Kōrin (1658-1716) – pa, meaning school, of (Kō)rin. In the early nineteenth century, the artist, collector and publisher Sakai Hōitsu (1761-1828) published One Hundred Paintings of Kōrin, sparking a renewed interest in the artist’s highly decorative screens, scrolls, textiles and lacquerware. The stag, worshipped as a messenger of a Shintō deity, alludes to the beauty of autumn; maple leaves, also representing autumn, are often shown near it.