The Kutani Ceramic Website

Old or obsolete Kanji

2023-11-23T16:46:43Z

The Japanese language is basically based on kanji, originally Chinese characters. The Nelson Japanese dictionary has listed in its last version, more than 7,000 different entries.
In 1923, as a matter of simplification the Ministry of Education specified 1,962 kanji and 154 simplified characters. This 1st guide is called the Joyo Kanji (常用漢字). A similar process of kanji simplification occurred in China as well as in Korea however on different basis.

The Joyo kanji guide has been revised and updated regularly, the last edition in 2010 has a list of 2,136 characters. The 2,136 kanji in the jōyō kanji consist of:

– 1,026 kanji taught in primary school
– 1,110 additional kanji taught in secondary school

It means that the Japanese language has had an important evolution and that today most of the young generations have difficulties to read document issued during Meiji period or early 20th century.
It is worst with calligraphy due to the wide use of word processors!

The table below gives a simple list of the old forms of kanji which we may find on Kutani ceramic signatures.

Current	Older forms				Romaji	English
一	弌	壱	壹		ichi	1
二	弐	弍	貮	貳	ni	2
三	参	參			san	3
四	肆				shi	4
五	伍				go	5
六	陸				roku	6
七	漆				nana	7
八	捌				hachi	8
九	玖				ku	9
十	拾				ju	10
二十	廿				niju	20
三十	卅	丗			sanju	30
四十	卌	肆十	四〇		yonju	40
千	仟	阡			sen	1000

世	卋				sei
野	埜	𡌛	堅		no
寉	鶴				Kaku
栄	榮				ei
国	國				kuni	Country
県	縣				Ken	Prefecture
社	舎				Sha	Company
双	雙				so
会	會				kai
賀	架				ga
欧	甌				no
恵	惠				kei/e
才	歳				sai	Year/age
横浜	横濱					Yokohama
円	園				maru
烟	煙					smoke
寿	壽				ju	long life
真	眞				Shin
来	耒				rai
専	專				Sen
号	號				go	Pen name
金沢	金澤					Kanazawa

Japanese calligraphy

2023-11-23T16:20:49Z

JAPANESE CALLIGRAPHY - 毛筆細字

It is around 1882 that the painters Nomura Zenkichi (野村善吉), (宮荘一藤) and Takahashi Hokuzan (高橋北山) started doing calligraphy in ceramics and wrote very small kanji around and also inside small kutani ceramic objects such as guinomi, sakazuki.
The fashion slowly developed and from 1887 has appeared in Kanazawa a lot of small kutani porcelains, rice bowls, dishes, koro, tea cups produced by famous painters such as Shimizu Bizan (清水清閑), Sasada Yuzan (笹田友山), Takeuchi (竹内誠山), Hachida (八田逸山). In fact they were requesting local calligraphists to write kanji inside and or outside to decorate their production
At the begining calligraphists were using Kanshi (漢詩), which is a Japanese term for Chinese poetry and also using Chinese characters.
Later during Taisho period the fashion moved to Japanese poetry and for example Yakuninisshu (100 poems, 100 poets) or Sanjurokka sen (36 immortals) has been widely used.
In 1895 Oda Seizan (小田清山) and in Terai, Ohara Eizan (大原江山) started calligraphy under the guidance of Nomura Zenkichi. Oda Seizan has improved this technique established few years and became specialized in this field. In 1912 Oda Seizan was mastering the calligraphy and will eventually become the most famous calligraphist and 1953 a Living National Treasure. Only few painters have since succeeded to reach a similar level.


昭山 Shozan - 錦山窯 Kinzan kiln - Hyakunin isshu - Comtemporary

住田岳陽 Sumida Gakuyo 2nd - Sanjurokka sen - 2000

In the data base, Kutani ceramics with calligraphy are classified according to 3 criteria which can be combined:

name of calligraphist who generally did only inside calligraphy
name of the painter or potter who did the pot and the painting
name of the kiln which has produced the ceramic

When the calligraphist is not identified, it is marked unknown.

Regarding the motifs used by the artists, there are either Chinese poems or Japanese traditionnal litterature and mainly Japanese poems called Waka (和歌). Waka is a japanese short poem written with 31 syllabes in five lines of 5, 7, 5, 7, 7 syllabes.

I would say that probably 50% of all Japanese calligraphy refer to 2 most famous poems

小倉百人一首 - Ogura Hyakunin isshu - 100 persons one poem

This is a compilation of the 100 most famous poems written by 100 different poets in a Waka style. This compilation is very famous and every Japanese know about and for the most advanced student know the whole content.

This particular compilation running from the seven to the thirtenth century is said to have been made by a poet called Fujiwara no Sadaie or Teika (1162- 1241) from Ogura district in Kyoto.

This is so famous that there is a game card generally played at new year's with the 100 poems and players should tell the end of the poem at the view of the first sentences.
For a full text of the poem - Courtesy of Virginia University
Example of titles of the Hyakunin Isshu poem:

三十六歌仙 - Sanju rokkasen - The 36 immortal poets

It is a list of the most famous poets compiled in the Xth century by Fujiwara no Kinto as representative of the period. All these poets were specialist of Waka.These poets are also called the immortals.
Example of titles of the Sanjurokka sen motif:

明治天皇御製 - Meiji Tenno Gyosei is also a famous poem of the Japanese litterature.

It is a set of 90 000 poems (waka - 和歌) written by the Japanese Emperor Mutsuhito (睦仁) (1852-1912).
Example of title for Meiji Tenno Gyosei motif.

If you wish to have a complete view of the motifs found on Kutani ceramics, please check in the data base calligraphy by motifs. Today there are 27 differents calligraphy motifs recorded. Additional motifs may be added when discovered.

Note: All photos are coming from Kutani pieces recorded in the database

Japanese kanji guide (by John Wocher)

2017-02-02T15:26:26Z

I have given considerable thought and many cups of sake to the frustration in reading and translating the markings that appear on Japanese ceramics.

Here are my thoughts and findings:

Ceramic artists, like physicians, have incredibly poor penmanship, and a great number of markings remain illegible.
The number of ways that Kutani can be written, legibly and illegibly, will cause your calculator to go into scientific notation.
Japanese writing can be left to right, right to left, horizontal, or vertical, but not diagonal.
Markings can be in almost any color, with red dominating Kutani, but black on green, and gold on red are common also
There are seven styles of writing, and all seven can be written illegibly if one trys hard enough. They are: Sosho style, Giosho style, Kaisho style, Reisho style, Hiragana (phonetic), Katagana (phonetic for foreign words), and Romaji (Romanized alphabet, such as "Made in Japan"). When Chinese style seals are used, all bets are off, and these remain among the most difficult to comprehend. A 1.8 liter bottle of Sake is recommend when tackling these.
Marks can be centered, off center, in a circle, in a square, in a double square, in a rectangle, stand alone, and can appear on the reverse or the front of a piece, or in both places simultaneously.
There are at least two readings for each Kanji (Chinese character), one being the Chinese reading, and the other being the Japanese reading and interpretation.
Many artist names read Zan (or in Japanese, Yama). Presumably when they get famous, they seem to take this kind of pen name. Bizan, Shizan, Seizan, Kyozan, Kinzan, and Kyokuzan, just to name a few, come to mind. Kyokushuzan (a Sumo wrestler here, does NOT do ceramics in spite of having a Zan in his name). Trouble is that there are many Zans, and often their fame was not long lasting. Many have the same names, which further adds to the confusion. Zannen desu ne?
Do not assume the Japanese themselves can read the markings. My guess = 80%+ cannot. Many of the characters used in Meiji and before are no longer in use. Getting confused? I am!
Even the most common of dinner plates, cups, and saucers today are marked. Yet some National Treasures here are unmarked. Go figure...eh?
The mark might be a place (Ku Tani). Or... it could be a name of a person (artist? potter?, a shop, a kiln, or none of the above.I need more Sake.
Increasingly, the Chinese are good at faking, or forging Japanese ceramics, right down to the marking. I have several, but I don't think it is widespread in Kutani...yet.
The mark can be incised, impressed, underglaze, overglaze, or in magic marker (I am not kidding). So... here is the definitive guide. I welcome additions. There are good resources, however, for wading through this, and don't get too frustrated. Sa'ke helps. Georges has a good reference library here in the database and unmarked pieces can often be identified by style. I recommend Bowes' book - Japanese Marks and Seals, and a good Japanese dictionary for starters, along with that 1.8 liter bottle of dai ginjo sa'ke.

Thanks John for this piece of anthology !