19th century
Cover and sliding compartment with rounded ends. The top and sides are covered by an arabesque overlaid in gold on a dark steel ground. On the base, the arabesque is overlaid in silver.
2.6 × 2.9 × 21.2 cm (1 × 1 1/8 × 8 3/8 in.)
Ezzat-Malek Soudavar, Geneva, Switzerland (by 2014), by descent; to her son Abolala Soudavar, Houston, Texas (2014), gift; to Harvard Art Museums, 2014. Note: Ezzat-Malek Soudavar (1913-2014) formed this collection over a period of sixty years. She purchased the works of art on the international art market.
Opaque watercolor, gold-colored pigments, and lacquer on pasteboard
19th-20th centurySteel with openwork and colored stones
19th centuryChūban (medium-sized) minogami (mulberry bark paper) treated with persimmon juice and cut using the "kiribori" (drill-carving) and "tsukibori" (thrust-carving) techniques
19th-20th centuryJapaneseChūban (medium-sized) minogami (mulberry bark paper) treated with persimmon juice and cut using the "dōgubori" (punch-carving) and "tsukibori" (thrust-carving) techniques, with "ito-ire" (silk-web) reinforcement
19th-20th centuryJapaneseChūban (medium-sized) minogami (mulberry bark paper) treated with persimmon juice and cut using the "tsukibori" (thrust-carving) technique
19th-20th centuryJapaneseInk and color on carved wood
19th centuryChineseOpaque and semi-opaque watercolor on prepared pasteboard under shellac varnish
19th centuryInk on carved wood
19th centuryChineseOpaque watercolor, gold-colored pigments, and lacquer on pasteboard
19th centuryOpaque watercolor, gold-colored pigments, copper ribbons, and lacquer over brass layer on pasteboard
19th centuryPersianInk on carved wood
19th centuryChineseInk and color on carved wood
19th centuryChinese