Incense Box (Kōgō) with Camellias

Incense Box (Kōgō) with Camellias

An item at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Small boxes of this type, which are preserved in Japan in some number, are often identified as incense boxes, for they were used as such during the tea ceremony. It seems likely that boxes of this type were also used in China to hold incense or other powdered substances such as cosmetics. The camellia spray on the cover is set against a plain background, a characteristic of early carved lacquers that would reemerge in the sixteenth century.

Asian Art

An exhibit at Metropolitan Museum of Art

Incense Box (Kōgō) with CamelliasIncense Box (Kōgō) with CamelliasIncense Box (Kōgō) with CamelliasIncense Box (Kōgō) with CamelliasIncense Box (Kōgō) with Camellias

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.