Box of mokumegane made of gold, silver and copper. “Sunlight reaching into the depth of sea”

Description

• Category
  Metalwork
• Materials
  Gold, Silver, Copper
• Dimensions
  H 12.0 x W 22.0 x D 8.5 cm
• Year of creation
  2013
• Rarity
  Unique

Techniques Used

Hammer forming

In hammer forming (tankin), a mallet is used to shape a sheet of metal by hammering it into recessions in a wooden stump or block. Next, the metal sheet is worked on the end of specially shaped iron bars known as forming stakes (ategane) to gradually create the final form. It takes tens of thousands of hammer strikes to produce a single finished work.

Mokumegane

Mokumegane (“wood-grain metal”) is a decorative metal laminate characterized by polychromatic wood-like grain patterns. The pattern is made by soldering together sheets of different metals to form a layered billet that is then hammer worked and cut to reveal the pattern. The metal may then be further worked to create objects with the unique patterning.

Embossing

Embossing, or metal chasing (uchidashi), is the process of using punches to raise designs on metal by repeatedly hammering the face or back of a piece (the latter technique being known as “repoussage”). Embossed work can take the shape of highly pronounced three-dimensional forms or shallow reliefs like those seen on brooches and ornaments for kimono obi.

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Selected exhibitions

• The 60th Japan Traditional Kōgei Exhibition (2013)
• Selected