Portable Nanban Box

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

In the second half of the sixteenth century, Japanese lacquer made for Western markets was known as nanban (Southern Barbarian), a reference to the epithet given to foreigners from Spain, Portugal, and the Netherlands. Many of these export lacquers were made in Kyoto. The maki-e (“sprinkled picture”) and rich mother-of-pearl decoration on this box consists of continuous interlinked circles (shippō) with stylized flowers in the intersections and five flower roundels on the lid.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

The Met's collection of Asian art—more than 35,000 objects, ranging in date from the third millennium B.C. to the twenty-first century—is one of the largest and most comprehensive in the world. Each of the many civilizations of Asia is represented by outstanding works, providing an unrivaled experience of the artistic traditions of nearly half the world.

Metropolitan Museum of Art