Stacked Food Box (Jūbako) with Taro Plants and Chrysanthemums

Stacked Food Box (Jūbako) with Taro Plants and Chrysanthemums

Shibata Zeshin

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

This food box was designed for a celebratory meal, such as New Year’s feast. It comes with two lids so that the boxes can be easily separated into two sets. The decorative, modern design consists of taro plants (satoimo) and chrysanthemum flowers. Shibata Zeshin was renowned for both his lacquer works and paintings. Because he started his career in the Edo period and worked through the early Meiji period, he crossed not only the boundaries of various media but also transmitted Edo-period techniques and design sensibilities to modern lacquer artists. Zeshin was trained by Koma Kansai II (1767–1835), a prominent member of the Koma family of maki-e artists, and studied with Shijō-school painters. His interest in sketching from nature reflected in his detailed compositions of natural themes.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Stacked Food Box (Jūbako) with Taro Plants and ChrysanthemumsStacked Food Box (Jūbako) with Taro Plants and ChrysanthemumsStacked Food Box (Jūbako) with Taro Plants and ChrysanthemumsStacked Food Box (Jūbako) with Taro Plants and ChrysanthemumsStacked Food Box (Jūbako) with Taro Plants and Chrysanthemums

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.