A tale of seven treasures

Abstract

Kajo Tsunekichi reinvented Chinese cloisonné in the 1830s in Japan. Split wires are the identifying mark of true Ming cloisonné, which is very rare. The Chinese are credited with being the first to apply this technique to freestanding objects in the round, as opposed to weaponry and jewelry. The materials of the Qing period are compared with those used earlier. By the mid-1870s, the quality of the Japanese work was equal to the early Chinese work; during this period, until 1914, the Japanese masters developed a new palette. Wireless cloisonné was first fabricated in 1889.