Antique Japanese bronze box with inlaid decoration, Meiji period

  
Superb antique Japanese bronze box with a brown patina, decorated with a delicate inlaid metal design depicting a bird perched on a flowering branch, set in an aquatic landscape with vegetation and insects. The finely chiselled decoration, enhanced with inlays in different tones (in the spirit of Japanese alloys such as shakudo or shibuichi), reflects the refined workmanship characteristic of Japanese art from the Meiji period.