lacquerware

The tradition & historical record

Lacquerware are objects decoratively covered with lacquer. Lacquerware includes small or large containers, tableware, miscellaneous lacquered small objects carried by people, and larger objects such as furniture and even coffins painted with lacquer. Before lacquering, the surface is sometimes painted with pictures, inlaid with shell and other materials, or carved. The lacquer can be dusted with gold or silver for example Hirameji and given further decorative treatments. East Asian countries have long traditions of lacquer work, going back several thousand years in the cases of China, Japan and Korea. The best known lacquer, sometimes referred to as 'true' lacquer, is an urushiol-based lacquer common in East Asia. It is obtained from the dried sap of the lacquer tree, Toxicodendron vernicifluum. Other types of lacquers are processed from a variety of plants and insects. The traditions of lacquer work in Southeast Asia, South Asia and the Americas are also ancient and originated independently. Attempts to imitate 'true' lacquer of East Asia, such as Japanning in Europe, are often loosely referred to as "imitation lacquer." ¹

The oldest lacquer tree found is from the Jōmon period in Japan, 12600 years ago. The oldest lacquerware in the world, burial ornaments which were created in 9th millennium B.C., were unearthed in early Jomon period tombs, at the Kakinoshima site in Hakodate, Hokkaido, Japan. Various prehistoric lacquerwares have been unearthed in China dating back to the Neolithic period and objects. The earliest known lacquerware in China is thought to be a red wooden bowl, which was unearthed at a Hemudu culture (c. 5th millennium BC) site in Zhejiang, China. ¹

During the Shang dynasty (ca. 1600–1046 BC), Chinese lacquer craftsmanship developed into a sophisticated decorative art. During the Eastern Zhou period (771–256 BC), lacquerware began appearing in large quantity. This is the earliest era from which notable quantities of lacquerware have survived, with the kingdom of Chu producing the largest number of lacquerware. The state of Chu having the geographical advantage and warmer climates enabled dedicated mass cultivation of lacquer trees and for lacquerware to become a commercial industry. Because of this, Chu-state became famous for its lacquerware exports in the neighbouring states in the Zhou kingdom, with literary references found in books like Zhuangzi and Shangshu, and providing some cultural cross-pollination between the southern culture of Chu and the culture of Zhongyuan. At the time of the Han dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD), special administrations were established to organize and divide labor for the expanding lacquer production in China. Elaborate incised decorations were used in lacquerware during the Han dynasty. In the Tang dynasty (618–907), Chinese lacquerware saw a new style marked by the use of sheets of gold or silver made in various shapes, such as birds, animals, and flowers. The cut-outs were affixed onto the surface of the lacquerware, after which new layers of lacquer were applied, dried, and then ground away, so the surface could be polished to reveal the golden or silvery patterns beneath. This was done by a technique known as pingtuo. Such techniques were time-consuming and costly, but these lacquerware were considered highly refined. ¹

The term for lacquer is urushi (漆), source of the English hybrid word "urushiol". Etymologically, urushi may be related to the words uruwashii ("beautiful") or uruoi ("watered", "profitable", "favored"), due speculatively to their value or shiny appearance, or perhaps the humidifying rooms used in production of lacquered wares. The term "Japanning" in the 17th century is a term for the technique used by Europe to emulate Asian lacquer, derived from the then famous Japanese lacquer. The general characteristic of Japanese lacquerware is the widespread use of various Maki-e techniques compared to other countries. As a result, there are many works in which relatively vivid gold and silver patterns and pictures shine on the black base of lacquerware, and the entire lacquerware is covered with shiny gold and silver grains. ¹

Primitive lacquer was used in Japan as early as 12,600 BC, during the Jōmon period. Lacquer was used in Japan as early as 7000 BCE, during the Jōmon period. Evidence for the earliest lacquerware was discovered at the Kakinoshima "B" Excavation Site in Hokkaido. These objects were discovered in a pit grave dating from the first half of the Initial Jōmon period (approx. 9,000 years ago) Japanese lacquering technology may have been invented by the Jōmon. They learned to refine urushi (poison oak sap) – the process taking several months. Iron oxide (colcothar) and cinnabar (mercury sulfide) were used for producing red lacquer. Lacquer was used both on pottery, and on different types of wooden items. In some cases, burial clothes for the dead were also lacquered. Many lacquered objects have turned up during the Early Jōmon period; this indicates that this was an established part of Jōmon culture. Experts are divided on whether Jōmon lacquer was derived from Chinese techniques, or invented independently. For example, Mark Hudson believes that “Jomon lacquer technology was developed independently in Japan rather than being introduced from China as once believed”. During the Asuka and Nara periods, between the 7th and 8th centuries, Chinese lacquer art forms were imported to Japan. ¹

In the Heian period (794–1185), various Maki-e techniques characteristic of Japanese lacquerware were developed. While the method of drawing designs with a brush by dissolving gold powder in lacquer is a common technique in other countries, the method of drawing designs with lacquer and then sprinkling gold, silver, or copper powder of various sizes and shapes on top to polish them was developed in Japan. ¹

Ryukyuan lacquerware is one of the chief artistic products of the Ryukyu Islands (today Okinawa Prefecture of Japan); it is quite distinct from the lacquerware found among the surrounding cultures. Nevertheless, Chinese and Japanese influences are present. ¹

The text above is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Lacquerware”, available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 licence. ¹

lacquerware is decorative work using lacquer, according to the structured record cited below. This entry was generated automatically from that record and has not yet been reviewed by a person familiar with the tradition. ²

The source record links this tradition to 15 external registers, which can be verified through the citation. ²