Seirando (Kawajiri Kihei)
c. 1868–1912
大日本九谷 青藍堂製
The 青藍堂 studio name inside the rectangle identifies this form; 大日本 alone is not an exact date.
painted · porcelain · Japan
Ware & regional marks
Kutani
Japan · From 1655 · 12 marks.
- Tradition from
- From c. 1655
- Country
- Japan
- Products
- porcelain tableware, vases, incense vessels, decorative porcelain
- Marks
- 12
Tradition dating from the mid-seventeenth century, interrupted around 1700 and revived in the nineteenth century; not a company lifespan.
What to look for
- 九谷 regional characters, with or without 製 or 造.
- A separate painter signature, workshop name or export merchant name.
- 福 seals, which are shared auspicious marks rather than factory identities.
Key makers & their marks
12 marks
Watano; Nishimura Saichi (decorator)
c. 1868–1912
Two red columns: merchant and province at right, painter at left
The separate painter column identifies Nishimura; Watano is the merchant or producer name, not that painter.
painted · porcelain · Japan
Wataya (probably Wataya Heibei)
c. 1868–1912
九谷造 綿谷製
綿谷 reads Wataya; distinguish it from the similar merchant name 綿野 or 綿埜, Watano.
painted · porcelain · Japan
Unidentified Kutani workshop
Undated
福
The square 福 seal is a blessing rather than an individual signature; it also occurs on later wares.
painted · porcelain · Japan
Higashi Fujiaki
Undated
九谷 富士明
富士明 names the decorator; the blue-green square differs from the plain regional 九谷 marks.
painted · porcelain · Japan
Kaburaki
Undated
加賀 九谷 鏑木製造
Read 鏑木 as the business name; the foundation date does not date this particular stamp.
painted · porcelain · Japan
Unidentified Kutani workshop
Undated
九谷
The double square and blue script distinguish this design from the red open-script regional marks.
underglaze painted · porcelain · Japan
Unidentified Kutani workshop
Undated
九谷製
製 means made; there is no individual maker name in this three-character form.
painted · porcelain · Japan
Momota
Undated
百田造
The fan-shaped reserve and right-to-left name separate this version from a plain Momota signature.
painted · porcelain · Japan
Takayama
Undated
高山画
画 identifies the painter; distinguish 高山 from other names ending in 山.
painted · porcelain · Japan
Uchida / Uchita
Undated
九谷 打田製
The lower 打田製 signature identifies the name; 九谷 at the top is the regional designation.
painted · porcelain · Japan
Watano Trading Company
Undated
大日本 綿埜製
The 埜 character in 綿埜 differs from 野 in another Watano spelling; compare the complete signature.
painted · porcelain · Japan
About Kutani
Kutani is a porcelain tradition of Ishikawa Prefecture, centred on Kaga, Komatsu, Nomi and Kanazawa, rather than a single factory. Its early history begins in the seventeenth century. The original kilns stopped around the beginning of the eighteenth century; production revived in the nineteenth century through several kilns and workshops. Yoshidaya revived production in 1824 and moved its kiln to Yamashiro in 1826. Brilliant overglaze enamels, red painting and gold decoration developed into different Kutani styles.
Export production expanded during the Meiji period, 1868–1912. Workshops, painters and merchants could all contribute to one object. Kaburaki sold and commissioned decorated porcelain in Kanazawa, while Watano and Wataya names appear on export wares. Kutani Shoza’s workshop helped establish elaborate gold decoration. A merchant’s name therefore need not identify the potter who formed the body.
The characters 九谷 read Kutani. Additional characters may identify a workshop or painter: 製 and 造 indicate making, while 画 indicates painting. Read a vertical inscription from the top down, taking the right-hand column before the left. 福, meaning good fortune, is an auspicious mark shared by different workshops. It also occurs on later pieces and other Japanese porcelains. Compare the whole mark, porcelain body and decoration together; neither red lettering nor a square seal gives a date by itself.
Also known as: 九谷焼 · Kutani-yaki · Japan Kutani · Kutani porcelain (Kutani-yaki)
Look-alikes & how to tell them apart
Satsuma-style decorated porcelain →
Gilded figures and dense decoration can resemble Satsuma. Check the porcelain body and full inscription; decorative style alone does not identify the kiln.
Arita / Imari 福 marks
福 is also found on Arita and Imari porcelains; compare the complete object and inscription rather than assigning every square 福 to Kutani.
Later Ko-Kutani-style reproductions
Later dishes repeat early palettes and square 福 marks. A Ko-Kutani-style design is not a seventeenth-century date.