JAPNAESE INSCRIPTION & MAKERS MARK INFO

[Stoystown]

HI,

I have a pure silver Japanese salt cellar for the table. It was for a wedding but i would like to know what the inscription says in English and anything about the markers mark.














Thank You, Stoystown

[davidross]

The maker is Yamazaki Manufacturing of Ginza, Tokyo, and it is marked "pure silver."

One likely translation of the inscription on the bottom (reading from right to left, top to bottom):

"Presented to Hakkei
February 8, 1958
Nakaido"

"Hakkei" ("Eight Sights," that is, eight scenic places) sounds like the name of a shop rather than a family name, and Nakaido is probably a family name. These are only educated guesses. This inscription does not lead me to conclude this item was part of a wedding celebration. A different character (rei, iwau) is most commonly used for inscriptions on gifts marking an auspicious event, and were this a wedding gift, the recipient's family name would surely be followed by an honorific ("sama" or "dono.") Perhaps you could supply anecdotal information about the piece, as well as dimensions of its size.

While I am certain of the maker and the date, please note that the translation of proper names in Japanese is nearly always guesswork as there are often more than one possible reading. Only someone with direct knowledge of the occasion of such a gift would be able to definitely speak to its particulars.

Were I to hazard a guess, this looks like a local business's promotional giveaway, a thank-you to loyal customers. Without knowing the size, it is impossible to say the intended use of this dish, but the boat shape is suggestive.

Regards
David Ross

[dognose]

Thanks to David's lead, a brief history of this firm can now be found at our Chinese Export Silver and Far East Trade Information topic at:

viewtopic.php?f=38&t=24259 under the title 'SHIMIZU SHOTEN', the firm's original name, on page 2 of the topic.

Trev.

[Stoystown]

HI,

That is more information than I could have hoped for. Thanks. The size of the boat is - length; 3 11/16 inches (stem to stern), 1 7/16 width, depth 5/16. It was sold as a Japanese salt seller for a wedding.

Could it have been a thank you for a wedding gift to the bride and groom from this shop Hakkei on the date of the wedding from the newly wed couple?

It does seem a little shallow for a salt cellar to be placed on a festive table. Unless each placing had one could explain it's small size. Not knowing how the Japanese set their tables I would not know if this conjecture of it being a salt cellar would be accurate.

I have no antidotal information except the description of it, as the object was bought over the internet.

Regards, Stoystown

[davidross]

From the size of the dish and its boat shape, it was probably meant to hold soy sauce and wasabi, into which sushi would be dipped.

It is not inconceivable that a bride and groom named Nakaido gave one of these small dishes as a thank-you to each person or business participating in their wedding. Without some additional documentation, though, I would not be comfortable attaching this story to the dish as anything more than one plausible scenario explaining the inscription.

Cheers
David Ross

[Stoystown]

Hi,

Thank you for all the information.

Regards, Stoystown