Japan, Pair of Hokai boxes in lacquered wood, Edo period, 1829

Japan, Rare Pair of Hokai boxes in lacquered wood, Edo period, dated Bunsei 12, 1829.
Hokai boxes are traditionally used in Japan to hold and transport shells for the game of Kai-awase but are also used as picnic boxes.
The shell game (kai-awase) dates back to the Heian period (9th-12th century) and involves putting together pairs of shells. The inside of the shells, traditionally clams, are painted or engraved with verses, and the challenge is to find the two parts that form a complete theme or poem.
This game goes beyond simple entertainment to take on a deep symbolic meaning. In addition to stimulating the mind and memory, it is charged with spiritual and aesthetic connotations, inviting participants into meditative contemplation of harmony and duality in the universe. As a result, this type of box often constituted precious wedding gifts.
These boxes are always arranged in pairs, in keeping with the nature of the game which consists of finding the corresponding halves of the shells.
Each box is made of wood with horizontal grooves and a slightly domed lid. They are supported by four slightly flared legs, and decorated with brass fittings. They have their original ropes and their transport boxes.
These hokai boxes feature rare trompe l'oeil decorations where superimposed sheets of paper reveal patterns of legendary characters emerging from their shadows, made in polychrome lacquer on a black background.
Trompe l'oeil and the graphic use of shadow as decorative motifs, present in Japanese art from the Edo period, exerted a fascination on European artists at the end of the 19th century, particularly in the Japonisme movement. and new art.
Figures such as Toulouse Lautrec, Henri Rivière and the Chat Noir shadow theater in Paris, or even Steinlen, were deeply marked by the Japanese aesthetic discovered through Japanese prints and other objects collected in the Parisian intellectual circles of the end of the 19th century.
Shadow puppets, with their subtle play of light and darkness, nourished the imagination of these artists, thus contributing to the evolution of artistic forms in Europe at that time.
Beyond their aesthetic and historical value, these Hokai boxes and their exceptional decor embody a fascinating bridge between cultures, testifying to the dynamic exchange of ideas and artistic influences between the East and the West during the 19th century.
The dimensions of the Hokai boxes are 47.5 cm x 47.5 at the feet. Height 43cm.
They have retained their original protective boxes. These storage boxes show some wear and defects. They bear the handwritten date of Bunsei 12 corresponding to 1829.
Good general condition, small scratches from use and small cracks on the bottom. No structural defect, no restoration.