Vintage Thursday Thingie: Japanese Imari Porcelain

This is a Japanese Imari Porcelain covered rice bowl. It is decorated in a underglaze cobalt blue and overglaze enamels in a fashion typical for this type of porcelain.
You can see the that it is painted with colored flowers and fans in panels around the outside of the bowl.

Imari ware was made at Arita, Kyushu and was very popular in Europe and took the name from the port that it was shipped out of. You can find out more about Imari ware and see some wonderful pieces here.

Small stylized flowers only in underglaze blue decorate the inside of the bowl and lid with bands of decoration around the rims.

Inside the raised foot is the porcelain mark-Aoki-believed to be a family mark (potttery production was often carried on by the same families for generations-with family secrets as to glazes and decorative designs).
It is very hard to specifically date a piece like this, the mark was used for a long period, so the piece could be from as early as the late 19th century until the mid-20th century.

I bought this piece years before I went to Japan...in 1971, now don't laugh, at Dayton's Department Store in Minneapolis, Mn. Don't ask me why but Dayton's imported alot of antique Imari ware pieces for Christmas 1971 and sold them in their regular china department! (You can see some wonderful pictures of Dayton's-inside and out-here.)

I was an art history student and heard about the sale from a professor and rushed right over. My sister was getting married and I thought-what an unusual wedding gift! I got them a beautiful platter and bought this rice bowl for myself. How did I pay for them...with my very first credit card!

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