Antique Japanese Arita Imari Porcelain Chrysanthemum Bowl | Edo Period | Early 18th Century | Hand-Painted Fuku Mark

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An exceptional antique Japanese Arita porcelain bowl executed in the historic Imari palette during the Edo period, most plausibly in … Read more An exceptional antique Japanese Arita porcelain bowl executed in the historic Imari palette during the Edo period, most plausibly in the early 18th century. Deeply molded and sculptural, the bowl is formed as a five-lobed chrysanthemum with a dramatically scalloped rim, fluted exterior walls and a substantial circular foot. Measuring 10 inches across and 4 1/2 inches high, it has a commanding presence well beyond that of the more commonly encountered shallow Imari serving bowls.

The decoration is entirely hand painted and combines saturated underglaze cobalt blue with iron-red, orange, black and gray-blue overglaze enamels. The interior is organized around a monumental pierced scholar’s rock rendered in deep cobalt, surrounded by flowering peonies, bamboo, smaller blossoms and delicate scrolling foliage. A gray-blue garden terrace, edged with an iron-red geometric fretwork fence, anchors the composition and gives the scene architectural depth.

The decoration continues across the exterior, where peonies, bamboo, cobalt foliage, scrolling vines and rockwork follow the bowl’s molded contours. Fine vertical ribbing catches the light across the porcelain surface, emphasizing the chrysanthemum form and giving the piece a notably sculptural quality. The palette, subject matter and decorative technique are all firmly rooted in historic Arita/Imari production.

Comparable Edo-period Japanese Imari bowls catalogued by Christie’s and Sotheby’s employ the same decorative vocabulary: underglaze cobalt combined with iron-red enamels, peonies, chrysanthemums, bamboo, pierced rockwork and molded chrysanthemum or flower-shaped forms. Christie’s has documented chrysanthemum-shaped Imari bowls from the late 17th to 18th century bearing fuku marks, while Sotheby’s has catalogued deep lobed Kenjo Imari bowls from the late 17th to early 18th century.

The underside carries a hand-applied iron-red auspicious emblem incorporating a stylized character within a diamond-shaped cartouche and surrounding ornamental flourish. The mark is consistent with the family of fuku, or “good fortune,” marks encountered on historic Arita porcelain. Such marks were auspicious decorative signatures rather than later commercial factory backstamps, and their presence further supports an Edo-period attribution.

The bowl’s proportions, molded construction, glazed recessed base, substantial foot ring and extensive hand-painted decoration inside and out are consistent with Japanese Arita production of the late 17th and 18th centuries.

The iconography is equally compelling. Peonies traditionally carried associations of wealth, honor and status; bamboo suggested resilience and endurance; chrysanthemum imagery conveyed longevity and renewal. Combined with the auspicious fuku-type emblem, the decorative program reads as a sophisticated visual expression of prosperity, strength, happiness and long life.

This bowl is particularly successful as both a work of Japanese ceramic art and a decorative object. Its unusually deep profile and bold molded silhouette allow it to function equally well displayed upright on a stand, placed on a dining or center table, or incorporated into a cabinet or library collection.

Origin: Arita region, Japan. Period: Edo period. Date: Early 18th century, circa 1700–1750; circa 1700–1730 is a plausible narrower attribution based on form and decoration. Material: High-fired hard-paste porcelain. Shape: Deep five-lobed chrysanthemum form. Decoration: Hand painted interior and exterior. Palette: Underglaze cobalt blue with iron-red, orange, black and gray-blue overglaze enamels. Mark: Hand-painted iron-red auspicious emblem consistent with a stylized fuku or “good fortune” mark. Diameter: 10 inches. Height: 4 1/2 inches. Foot-ring diameter: 4 1/4 inches See less