Sep 14, 2009 10:00 EST
Asian Works of Art
20
Japanese Model of a Pagoda at Nara
Possibly a model of the five story pagoda at Kofukuji Temple, Meiji Period, completed in 1898
The five story structure constructed of bronze, silver and gold. Height 50 inches, width 23 inches, depth 23 inches.
Gift of Estate of Mrs. E.H. Harriman 1934 34.45, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, New York
The pagoda begun by Kijo Koyano and completed by his son Masami Koyano in 1898. Descended from sculptors and architects, the Koyano family trade was metalwork. After years of difficulty and struggle in the spring of the twenty-second year of Meiji (1889) the Koyano family isolated themselves so as to wholly devote their attentions and energy to the completion of the pagoda. Finally nine years later, in the autumn of the thirty-first year of the Meiji Era (1898), the project was completed. In Masami Koyano's words the pagoda was "...an immortal work worthy of the family." Koyano was determined not to sell the work but to leave it to his offspring as a family treasure and as a model for future generations. It was Mr. E.H. Harriman, a patron of the arts, that persuaded Masami to sell, convincing him that by selling the pagoda "it would have chances of being appreciated by art lovers and that my labors would be richly rewarded by its introduction to the public". Masami then "surrendered it...for his good reasoning, not for the money he paid for it". Mr. Harriman lent the pagoda to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1905.
An excerpt from a statement by Masami Koyano and translated for publication in the Bulletin of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Volume I, p. 112, New York, November 1905, is available on request.
Sold for $62,500
Estimated at $25,000 - $35,000
Includes Buyer's Premium
Japanese Model of a Pagoda at Nara
Possibly a model of the five story pagoda at Kofukuji Temple, Meiji Period, completed in 1898
The five story structure constructed of bronze, silver and gold. Height 50 inches, width 23 inches, depth 23 inches.
Gift of Estate of Mrs. E.H. Harriman 1934 34.45, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, New York
The pagoda begun by Kijo Koyano and completed by his son Masami Koyano in 1898. Descended from sculptors and architects, the Koyano family trade was metalwork. After years of difficulty and struggle in the spring of the twenty-second year of Meiji (1889) the Koyano family isolated themselves so as to wholly devote their attentions and energy to the completion of the pagoda. Finally nine years later, in the autumn of the thirty-first year of the Meiji Era (1898), the project was completed. In Masami Koyano's words the pagoda was "...an immortal work worthy of the family." Koyano was determined not to sell the work but to leave it to his offspring as a family treasure and as a model for future generations. It was Mr. E.H. Harriman, a patron of the arts, that persuaded Masami to sell, convincing him that by selling the pagoda "it would have chances of being appreciated by art lovers and that my labors would be richly rewarded by its introduction to the public". Masami then "surrendered it...for his good reasoning, not for the money he paid for it". Mr. Harriman lent the pagoda to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1905.
An excerpt from a statement by Masami Koyano and translated for publication in the Bulletin of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Volume I, p. 112, New York, November 1905, is available on request.
Overall good condition.
Any condition statement is given as a courtesy to a client, is an opinion and should not be treated as a statement of fact and our Organization shall have no responsibility for any error or omission. Please contact the specialist department to request further information or additional images that may be available.
Auction: Asian Works of Art, Sep 14, 2009
