Temple in Snow

Kawase Hasui

Showa period (1926-1989), About 1930

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Small dish with barbed edge, with underglaze cobalt outlining and chocolate base
Priest's Robe (Kesa), Japan, silk and metallic thread
Glazed stoneware bowl with chrysanthemum spray in well and scrolling bands below rim all painted in underglaze iron
A fish pattern, the pervasive theme of this oval tray, comes from the symbol of the Nawebro of Oudh, and it was frequently used by local Oudh silversmiths in border decorations. The fish make their first appearance on the fluted and beaded rim. They appear again, in a stylized the border on the inside portion of the tray, and, finally, the theme is alluded to yet a third time, in the ground of the landscape in the center: not fish this time, but as a cross-hatching pattern of large fish scales. The inner portion of the tray depicts a highly detailed and typical Lucknow jungle scene, with elephants, tigers, lions, and other animals; palm trees; and a large haveli surrounded by huts. This heavy-gauge silver is the répoussé and chased work most favored by Muslim patrons.