An incredible Shigaraki Mizusashi by master of the genre Takahashi Rakusai enclosed in the original signed wooden box titled simply Shiho Mizusashi.The surface has almost become molten glass, charred and embedded with embers from being buried deep in the coals.It is 16.5 x 18 x 21.5 cm (6-1/2 x 7-1/4 x 8-1/2 inches) and is in perfect condition.
Born in Shigaraki in 1900, Rakusai was considered one of the true masters of Shigaraki and Iga-yaki, along with Naokata and later Michio. He worked toward the revival of Kamakura and Muromachi wares like this piece, and came to the world stage when he won international acclaim after being prized at the 1958 Brussels Exposition. He was later named a Shiga-ken Juyo Mukei Bunkazai and is credited as one of the artists that saved Japanese pottery from extinction in the post-war years. He eschewed the National Competitions and was a proponent of the world of private exhibition. He died in 1976.
