. The mikado's empire. ection never sinceexcelled, if indeed it has been equaled. In enameled and inlaid metalwork the hand of the Japanese artisan has undoubtedly lost its cun-ning. Native archaeologists assert that a good catalogue of lostarts may be made out, notably those of the composition and appli- LIFE IN THE MIDDLE AGES. 20;b cation of violet lacquer, and the ancient cloisonne enamel. The deli-cacy of tact, freedom of movement, and perfection of finish visible onJapanese work, are the result of long hereditary application and con-centrated skill. Hidden away in sequestered villages, o
. The mikado's empire. ection never sinceexcelled, if indeed it has been equaled. In enameled and inlaid metalwork the hand of the Japanese artisan has undoubtedly lost its cun-ning. Native archaeologists assert that a good catalogue of lostarts may be made out, notably those of the composition and appli- LIFE IN THE MIDDLE AGES. 20;b cation of violet lacquer, and the ancient cloisonne enamel. The deli-cacy of tact, freedom of movement, and perfection of finish visible onJapanese work, are the result of long hereditary application and con-centrated skill. Hidden away in sequestered villages, or occupying thesame workshop in cities for centuries, generations of craftsmen wroughtupon one class of objects, until from the workmans hand is born theoffspring of a long pedigree of thought and dexterity. Japanese an-tiquarians fix the date of the discovery of lacquer-ware variously 724 and 900. Echizen, from the first, has been noted for theabundance and luxuriant yield of lacquer-trees, and the skill of her. Chasing Floral Designs from Nature on Copper. workmen in extracting the milk-white virgin sap, which the action ofthe air turns to black, and which by pigments is changed to variouscolors. In the thirteenth century the art of gold-lacquering attainedthe zenith of perfection. Various schools of lacquer art were founded,one excelling in landscape, another in marine scenery, or the delinea-tion, in gold and silver powder and varnish, of birds, insects, and flow-ers. The masters who flourished during the Hojo period still rule thepencil of the modern artist. Kioto, as the civil and military as well as ecclesiastical capital ofthe empire, was the centre and standard of manners, language, and 204 THE MIKADOS EMPIME. etiquette, of art, literature, religion, and government. No people aremore courtly and polished in their manners than the Japanese, andmy visit to Kioto in 1873 impressed me with the fact that the citizensof this proud miako surpass all others in Japan in
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Keywords: ., bookauthorgriffisw, bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, bookyear1894
