Japanese Meiji Bronze Dragon Vase 19th Century Signed

Beautiful LARGE Japanese Meiji Bronze Dragon Vase 19th Century Signed to the base

Very well cast high relief Dragon & Crane with great detail

Condition : The vase has a small hole at the back ( SEE PHOTOS ) The damage is on the back of the vase so the vase still displays very well.

Height : 31cm

Any Questions Welcome

Japanese Meiji period

The Japanese Meiji period, defined as the period between 1868 and 1912, was an era in which artists were forced to respond to these questions on a new scale.

Meiji Japan was famously the era in which, after nearly 300 years of almost complete isolation from the globe, Japan began to trade openly with Europe and the West.

Consequently, Meiji Japan saw a new flourishing in the arts, as craftsmen and artists found their work in high demand overseas. It would lead to a vast expansion in production, and the development of a new 'national' style.

Also known as the Meiji Restoration, the Meiji period was the era in the late 19^th Century in which Japan returned to being ruled by an Emperor, known as the Emperor Meiji (‘meiji’ means ‘enlightened rule’).

Since around 1600, Japan had been ruled by a complex system known as the Tokugawa Shogunate, or simply the shogunate. It nominally had Emperors, but these were generally figureheads with no real power. Instead, Japan was controlled by the shogun, a military governor who ruled from the city of Edo (now called Tokyo). The shogunate era was often known as the ‘Edo Period’.

Pre-Meiji Japan was a feudal society. That is, land in Japan was divided up into large estates (called han) which were owned by daimyo (lords). Peasants could not own their own land, but merely borrow it from their lord in exchange for food and military service.