Reading Kutani marks

This Article in an extract from the Book Kutani Calligraphy, Vol. II of The Kutani Studies Series.

Many Kutani marks and signatures, particularly those dating from late Edo, Meiji, Taisho, and early Showa periods, employ historical character forms known today as Kyujitai (旧字体, “old character forms”). These forms differ from the simplified characters commonly used in modern Japanese writing.

The Japanese writing system has undergone several reforms during the twentieth century, resulting in the gradual adoption of simplified characters forms in modern Japanese writing. Consequently, marks that were perfectly normal when they were written may appear unfamiliar to modern readers.

The use of Kyujitai should not be interpreted as evidence of age in itself, since older forms continued to be used well into the twentieth century. Nevertheless, familiarity with these characters is often essential for reading Kutani marks, identifying place names, workshop names, merchant houses, and painter signatures.

The following tables present some of the character forms most frequently encountered on Kutani ceramics.

The forms listed in this above table are not official Kyujitai–Shinjitai correspondences. They represent historical, graphic, or non-standard variants documented on Kutani ceramics and should be interpreted according to context.

The appearance of non-standard characters on Kutani marks should not be regarded as unusual. During the Edo and Meiji periods, literacy levels varied considerably among craftsmen, and marks were often copied repeatedly from existing examples. As a result, graphic variants, simplified forms, unconventional substitutions, and occasional errors may all be encountered. In some cases, these forms became sufficiently established to appear on multiple objects and should therefore be documented rather than dismissed as isolated mistakes.