The exquisite art of Japanese lacquerwork has long had its share of devotees and collectors in the West. But ther has been little to help them take the step from admiration to more exact knowledge, since only a handful of experts have access to the comprehensive, although not always systematic, Japanese literature on the subject. This book is a translation from the German of the only western work on the history of the craft. Professor von Ragué links the development of Japanese lacquerwork to dated pieces, giving a sequence of fixed reference opints around which she fits numerous other significant but undated examples. She also clarifies the evolution of shape, design, and style, from prehistoric to present times, and discusses related arts such as ceramics, metalwork, and textiles to trace the relationship between the various branches of Japanese applied art and their influence on lacquerwork.

The book is lavishly illustrated with black and white and some colour photographs of outstanding examples of Japanese lacquerwork, and is written in a style easy to read. It will be welcomed therefore by all friends of Japanese art, as well as by collectors, scholars, and art dealers who will appreciate the wealth of technical detail. Appendixes contain notes, al ist of dated objects from 764 to 1964, a glossary of Japanese descriptive terms, a list of Japanese artists and technical terms with corresponding Japanese characters, a bibliography, and an index.

BEATRIX VON RAGUÉ is Director of the Museum of Far Eastern Art, West Berlin.

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