KAKOSAI SHOZAN: A SUPERB INLAID GOLD LACQUER FOUR-CASE INRO DEPICTING BENKEI AND YOSHITSUNE ASKING FOR DIRECTIONS By Kakosai Shozan, signed Kakosai Shozan 可交齋 枩山 with red 'tsubo' seal Japan, early 19th century, Edo period (1615-1868) Of upright, rounded rectangular form, bearing a lustrous kinji ground, lavishly decorated with gold, hiramaki-e and kirigane as well as gold and silver takamaki-e, and with marvellous inlays of gold takazogan, shakudo with gold hirazogan (flat plane inlay), and suaka (red bronze), depicting the famous warrior Yoshitsune and his servant Benkei in a hilly landscape with gnarled pine trees inquiring directions from a young farmer boy carrying firewood in a basket. The underside with the signature KAKOSAI SHOZAN in gold lacquer and with a red-lacquered 'tsubo' (pot) seal against a dense nashiji ground. HEIGHT 8.8 cm Condition: Excellent condition with only very minor wear. Provenance: From a private collection in Florida, USA. The reverse with two boys gathering wood in a vast landscape with a meandering path between hills lined with tall trees, a towering mountain in the background. The interior of rich gyobu with gold fundame edges. With a fine metal ojime in the form of a South Sea islander clinging on to the cord. The lacquerer is Kakosai Shozan who worked in Edo during the 19th century and whose inro are frequently embellished, as here, with metal details. Kakosai Shozan is recorded in Wrangham, E. A. (1995) The Index of Inro Artists, p. 258. Auction comparison: A related metal-inlaid inro by the artist was sold at Christie's, Japanese Art & Design, 16 November 2000, London, lot 37 (sold for 7,050 GBP). 13% VAT will be added to the hammer price additional to the buyer's premium - only for buyers within the EU.