Incense container with scrolls

During formal tea gatherings, the host often adds charcoal and incense into the brazier in front of the guests. The incense container (kogo) serves both as a functional utensil and an object to be admired.

Made in a Chinese Southern Song lacquer technique known in Japanese as tsuishu, this work has multiple layers of red, yellow, and black lacquer that have been intricately carved.