JAPON - ÉPOQUE EDO (1600-1868) - XVIIIe SIÈCL... Lot n° 34

WEDDING CHEST Built of wood, hiramaki-e and takamaki-e lacquer H. 74 cm, W. 153 cm, D. 61cm This important rectangular chest presents on all sides a decoration of Mon of the Tokugawa clan (fig.1) as well as the Mon of the Toyotomi clan (fig.2) and stylized flowers and foliage. Hinges and spandrels in gilded and engraved copper. Aventurine lacquer interior. Going back to the feudal era of Japan, the Tokugawa family ruled the country for 265 years through 15 shoguns. Descendant of the Minamato, their ancestor was Nit-ta Yoshi-shige († in 1202), grandson of Minamato Yoshi-iyé. At the beginning of the 13th century, Yoshi-suyé, 4th son of Nit-ta Yoshi-shige, decided to settle in Tokugawa, a small village in the province of Kô-zuké and took its name. This was the beginning of the Tokugawa lineage. One of the most illustrious members of this family was undoubtedly Iyé-yasu who became the first Tokugawa shogun in 1603. The latter left nine sons, the second of whom, Hide-yasu, became the founder of the eight branches of the Matsu-daïra of Echi-zen or the "Echi-zen ké", while his last three sons formed the three princely Tokugawa families or the "san-ké" from which the shogun could be chosen: - The princes of Owari, from Yoshi-nao (1600-1650), 7th son of Iyé-yasu. His descendants remained until the Meiji Restoration in O-wari. - The princes of Ki-shû, from Yori-nobu (1602-1671), 8th son of Iyé-yasu, who received in 1619 the feud of Wakayama in Ki-i. His descendants remained there until the Meiji Restoration. - The princes of Mi-to, from Yori-fusa (1605-1661), 9th son of Iyé-yasu. In 1609, Yori-fusa received the estates of Mi-to in Hitachi. Yoshinobu Tokugawa, the last Japanese shogun we are interested in here, belonged to this family. The younger branches of these three families all bear the name Matsu-daïra. The main coat of arms of the Tokugawa are well known in Japan, and consist of three mauve leaves (aoi) in a circle, th