Nakamura Shūhō IV Pair of Iro-e Kikō-ro Incense Burners, 'Hatsune' (Tale of Genji)

A pair of hand-made enamelled kikō-ro, the small listening-incense burners used in kōdō, painted by Nakamura Shūhō IV with the 'Hatsune' chapter of The Tale of Genji.

Commissioned as a Koju special selection, each burner shows one scene from the chapter: plum blossom with a bush warbler, and pine under snow. Hatsune is set on New Year's Day, when the eight-year-old Akashi princess, Genji's only daughter, receives a poem from the mother she is not allowed to see. Koju, the Ginza incense house, describes the colours as gentle and the texture as soft. In the incense ceremony a kikō-ro is cupped in the hand while the guest 'listens' to a sliver of fragrant wood warmed over buried charcoal.

Details

• Artist: Nakamura Shūhō IV (四代 中村秋峰)
• Set: pair (plum and warbler; pine and snow)
• Material: enamelled (iro-e) ceramic
• Size: approx. 8.2 × 8.2 × 7.5 cm each (hand-made; slight variation)
• Box: paulownia wood box
• Condition: new

Watch: how incense is "listened to" in kodo

Kyoto incense house Shoyeido demonstrates monko, the kodo way of listening to incense with a small kiki-goro burner. (A general craft video — not this piece or maker.)

Please read before ordering

• Limited availability. We confirm availability with the dealer in Japan within one business day of your order; if it has sold we refund in full immediately.
• Ships from New Jersey in 2–3 weeks. Price includes all import duties. Fully insured, signature required.
• Professionally double-boxed for shipping.