Umbrella Waters - Unmarked, likely Kutani region kiln

Name: Umbrella Waters
 
Type: Hand-painted Japanese Kutani-style miniature bowl
 
Year: Late Meiji to early Taishō era, circa 1900–1920
 
Set: No
 
Mark: Unmarked, likely Kutani region kiln - Unmarked, likely Kutani region kiln
 
History: This is a small Japanese porcelain bowl decorated in the traditional Kutani style, featuring hand-painted figures of women in kimonos—one with a parasol—beside a riverbank scene with stylized flora. The decoration employs a fine red overglaze outline with washes of iron red, cobalt, green, and soft blue enamel, a typical Kutani aesthetic of the late Meiji (1868–1912) to Taishō (1912–1926) period.
 
 
The foot is distinctive: a rough, unglazed, slightly elevated square pad with a central recess—characteristic of certain Japanese regional kiln techniques. The lack of a stamped or painted mark further supports its origin from a smaller kiln or studio, common for early 20th-century Kutani export ware.
 
 
The form, decoration, and enamel style are consistent with items made for the export market during Japan’s modernization era, when demand for hand-painted “exotic” wares in Europe and the Americas grew rapidly.
 
Flaws: None