Lacquerware in Asia, today and yesterday Edited by MONIKA KOPPLIN UNESCO PUBLISHING MEMORY OF PEOPLES Lacquerware in Asia, today and yesterday Lacquerware in Asia, today and yesterday Edited by MONIKA KOPPLIN Memory of Peoples | The Intangible Heritage UNESCO Publishing The authors are responsible for the choice and the presentation of the facts contained in this book and for the opinions expressed therein, which are not necessarily those of UNESCO and do not commit the Organization. The designations employed and the presentation of material throughout this book do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of UNESCO concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or of its authorities, or concerning the delimitation of its frontiers or boundaries. Published in 2002 by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization 7, place de Fontenoy, F-75352 Paris 07 SP Typeset by: Susanne Almeida-Klein Printed by imprimerie Jouve, 41100 Mayenne, ISBN 92-3-103808-7 © UNESCO 2002 Printed in France 5 Foreword Dating back several thousand years in Chinese history, ment of lacquer, they are mainly of a descriptive and aes- the art of lacquer can claim to be one of the most ancient thetic nature. While they serve to remind the reader of and venerable expressions of Asian culture. The tra- the beauty and refinement of this time-honoured craft, ditional techniques of lacquer that had initially been dis- they do not contribute directly to the protection and covered for protecting wooden or woven bamboo uten- transmission of lacquer techniques. sils from humidity and insects were naturally conveyed along the many trade routes that linked China with its Lacquerware in Asia, today and yesterday, published in neighbours and rapidly spread to other countries in the Intangible Heritage series, breaks new ground in this Asia. These techniques developed throughout the ages, field. It offers a comprehensive picture of a savoir-faire became more complex, and resulted in an enduring art that partakes of both creative arts and craftsmanship. It form combining vast know-how and astonishing practi- also allows the reader to compare the different methods cality. Lacquer became a thriving industry of worldwide and materials used in Cambodia, China, India, Korea, renown. Japan, Myanmar, Thailand and Viet Nam, to name but a few. There is indeed remarkable similarity of approach to However, there is growing apprehension that this tra- the craft of lacquerware in regions that could hardly be ditional knowledge, so firmly rooted in people’s daily farther apart. This resemblance became very clear during lives as part of their cultural expression, is under threat the workshop on traditional lacquerware techniques as never before. Over the past decades, the number of organized by UNESCO in Myanmar, in 1997, and people employed in lacquerware workshops, and partic- attended by a large number of lacquer specialists and art ularly the younger generation, has fallen dramatically all historians from different countries. Not the least of the over Asia. Although many art books have been pub- merits of this meeting was that it underscored the lished in recent years recognizing the beauty and refine- artisans’ crucial role as guardians of traditional lacquer 6 techniques; they are the only ones who can hand down the basic tenets for safeguarding the diversity of cultures to the younger generation what they themselves inher- that make up the history of humankind. ited from their peers. The intangible heritage is one of Koïchiro Matsuura DIRECTOR-GENERAL OF UNESCO 7 Contents Foreword 5 List of figures 9 List of contributors 17 Preface: Lacquerware in Asia: past and present Monika Kopplin 19 Part One THE ART OF LACQUER, PAST AND PRESENT Lacquerware in Asia: China, Korea, Japan and the Ryukyu Islands Monika Kopplin 25 Asian lacquerware: maintaining the tradition Kazushige Kaneko 79 Part Two LACQUER AS A LIVING TRADITION The historical inheritance and development of China’s traditional lacquerware Chen Zhengyu 87 The Yi people of China: their culture and lacquerware Zhang Jianshi 97 Lacquerware in Korea Paik Syeung-gil 109 The history and characteristics of Wajima-nuri lacquerware Keiichi Shimaguchi 117 Kiso lacquerware of Japan Arihiko Natsume 123 Ryukyu lacquerware Maeda Kouin 129 The art and industry of lacquerware in Thailand Sone Simatrang 133 Lai Rod Nam: Thai gold-leaf lacquerware technique Sompong Saengaramroungroj 143 8 Traditional lacquerware manufacture in Viet Nam Tran Huy Quang 149 Vietnamese son mai, an art both traditional and modern Phan Dang Nhat 159 Cambodian lacquer art and Khmer lacquerware An Sitha 165 Myanmar lacquerware: historical background and cultural perspectives Khin Mg Nyunt 173 Myanmar traditional lacquerware techniques Than Htaik 183 The lacquerware industry in Kyaukka today Myo Myint 187 Lacquerwork in India Haku Shah 191 Glossary 204 Selected bibliography 222 Index 232 9 List of figures 1. Harvesting lacquer resin. 26 2. Filtering lacquer resin by squeezing. 26 3. Drying and stirring raw lacquer to ripen it. 26 4. Preparing cores or bodies: filling cracks in the wood with strips of paper or gauze. 26 5. Polishing wooden cores with stones prior to lacquering. 27 6. Painted wicker basket from the Tomb of the Painted Basket in Lo-lang, northern Korea (replica). 22 × 39 × 18 cm. China (Sichuan), second century (Eastern Han dynasty). Stockholm, Museum of Far Eastern Antiquities. 30 7. Dish with lobed edge in the shape of a mallow blossom, red lacquer. 2.8 × 18.5 cm diameter. China, Song dynasty (960–1279). Tokyo, Lee Collection. 31 8. Audience scene, with river landscape in the background. Rectangular box, black lacquer with polychrome painting surrounded by a gilt border and with basketry panels. 12 × 47.5 × 34.3 cm. China, c. 1600 (Ming dynasty). San Francisco, Asian Art Museum. 32 9. Tray, carved brown and red lacquer with guri pattern. China, Yuan dynasty (1271–1368). Beijing, National Palace Museum. 33 10. Landscape with pavilion and reception scene. Standing table screen (section), red carved lacquer. Height, 58.5 cm. China, beginning of fifteenth century (Ming dynasty). Stuttgart, Linden-Museum. 34 11. Peony, lotus and chrysanthemum sprays. Vase, carved red lacquer. Height, 15.5 cm. China, beginning of fifteenth century (Ming dynasty). Münster, Museum für Lackkunst. 36 12. Camellia sprays. Dish (section), carved red lacquer. China, beginning of fifteenth century (Ming dynasty). Beijing, National Palace Museum. 36 13. Winged dragon against background of green waves, framed by six-petalled prunus border. 10 Octagonal container, carved red lacquer. 13.7 × 22.5 cm diameter. China, mid-sixteenth century (Ming dynasty). Tokyo, Lee Collection. 38 14. Scene in Imperial Palace with numerous figures. Coromandel screen (section). China, dated 1659 (Qing dynasty). Washington, D.C., Freer Gallery of Art. 40 15. Dragon and phoenix in ogival panel. Cabinet, filled and incised lacquer. 49 × 56.8 × 42 cm. China, first half of fifteenth century (Ming dynasty). London, Victoria and Albert Museum. 41 16. The palace of Hsi Wang-mu and the Eight Immortals. Octagonal container, black lacquer with mother-of-pearl inlays. 23.4 × 36 cm diameter. China, Yuan dynasty (1279–1368). Tokyo, Lee Collection. 43 17. Flowering plum tree with crescent moon in night sky. Tray, black lacquer with mother-of-pearl inlays. 3.3 × 34.4 × 33.6 cm. China, fourteenth to fifteenth century (Yuan/early Ming dynasty). Münster, Museum für Lackkunst. 43 18. Terrace with the Eight Immortals. Screen from throne ensemble (detail of centre panel), black lacquer with mother-of-pearl inlays and gold. 286 × 330 cm. China, c. 1670 (Qing dynasty). Berlin, Museum für Ostasiatische Kunst. 44 19. Rows of chrysanthemum leaves. Sutra box. Black lacquer with mother-of-pearl and silver-wire inlays. 25.4 × 47.6 × 25 cm. Korea, twelfth/thirteenth century (Koryo dynasty). London, British Museum. 52 20. Lotus scrolls. Box. Black lacquer with mother-of-pearl inlays. 4.4 × 26.4 × 18.4 cm. Korea, sixteenth/seventeenth century (Yi dynasty). Tokyo, National Museum. 53 21. Lotus shoots. Document box. Red lacquer with mother-of-pearl inlays. 7 × 37 × 25.5 cm. Korea, fifteenth/sixteenth century (Yi dynasty). Hamburg, Museum für Kunst und Gewerbe. 53 22. Landscape with crescent moon. Serving table (board). Red and black lacquer with mother-of-pearl inlays. 8 × 32 × 32 cm. Japan, early seventeenth century (Edo period). Kamakura, Meigetsu-in. 54 23. Lotus shoots. Box. Brown-black lacquer with crackled mother-of-pearl, tortoiseshell and twisted copper-wire inlays. 42 × 44.8 × 23.5 cm. Korea, eighteenth century (Yi dynasty). London, Victoria and Albert Museum. 54 24. Vines. Clothes box (detail). Black lacquer with mother-of-pearl inlays. 19 × 48 × 76.5 cm. Korea, nineteenth century (Yi dynasty). Tokyo, National Museum. 55 25. Phoenixes and lotus shoots. Cabinet (detail.) Brownish lacquer with sprinkled-in gold flakes together with sharkskin, tortoiseshell, mother-of-pearl and brass wire inlays. 16 × 86 × 38.3 cm. Korea, nineteenth century (Yi dynasty). Münster, Museum für Lackkunst. 55 26. Clothes box. Black lacquer with crackled mother-of-pearl, tortoiseshell and twisted silver inlays. 16.7 × 58.3 × 38.7 cm. Korea, nineteenth century (Yi dynasty). Roger Weston Collection. 56 27. Chûson-ji, Hiraizumi. Interior view of the Konjiki-dô temple hall. Gold-sprinkled design with mother-of-pearl inlays. 59 28. Wheels turning in water (katawaguruma). Toiletry box (tebako), black lacquer with gold- and aokin-sprinkled design with mother-of-pearl inlays. 13 × 30.5 × 22.5 cm. Japan, twelfth century (Heian period). Tokyo, Bunkazai Hogo Iin-kai. 59 29. Sparrows in the field. Toiletry box (tebako), black lacquer with gold- and silver-sprinkled design. 18.5 × 42 × 28.5 cm. Japan, twelfth century (Heian period). Osaka, Kongô-ji. 60 30. Plum trees and wild geese. Toiletry box (tebako), black lacquer with gold-sprinkled design and silver inlays.