Yoshino Bowl — a lidded bowl in Hidehira-nuri with blossoms and leaves painted in red on black

Why this bowl

This is the Yoshino bowl from Marusan Shikki, a lidded bowl made for simmered dishes and for zoni, the soup that opens the New Year in Japan. At 136 mm across it holds a generous single serving, and the lid keeps the food warm until everyone is seated. Unlike the workshop's classic Hidehira bowls, it carries no gold leaf. The whole design is painted by hand in red lacquer on a black ground, which gives it a quieter presence at the table and makes it as easy to use on an ordinary evening as on a festive one.

The pattern

Hidehira-nuri is a lacquer tradition from near Hiraizumi in Iwate, built on gold leaf and hand-painted motifs over a lacquer ground. The Yoshino bowl takes only the painted side of that tradition, in the pattern Marusan Shikki calls Yoshino-e. Five-petalled blossoms, each petal filled with fine radiating lines, sit between pairs of leaves whose veins are drawn as rows of short strokes, with small rings and dots scattered between them. The same blossom is painted once more on the flat, raised disc on top of the lid. A thin red line runs around the rim of both the bowl and the lid. The linework is the demanding part: Marusan Shikki notes that every one of the many lines is drawn separately, by a craftsperson who has spent years at it, and the pattern only reads as a whole once all of them are in place.

How it is made

The bowl is turned from wood, built up with coats of lacquer, and then decorated by hand. The red is hon-shu, a vermilion lacquer, and the workshop notes that the fine brushwork is what brings out its colour so clearly against the black. Because each line is painted one at a time, the decoration takes steady concentration from start to finish.

The workshop

Marusan Shikki has worked in Hidehira-nuri since 1904, from a workshop in Ichinoseki now in its fifth generation.

What to know before you buy

As with any urushi lacquerware, wash by hand in lukewarm water with a mild detergent, and keep it away from the microwave and dishwasher. For the first two to three months, start with lukewarm rather than very hot food or drink so the lacquer settles in gradually. Dry with a soft cloth, skip long soaking, and store away from direct sunlight.

Details

Sold as a single bowl with its lid. It measures W136 × D136 × H103 mm. Made to order and shipped from Japan via DHL, with a lead time of approximately two months.

If your table could use one lidded bowl for simmered dishes and soups through the year, you can order it below. Any questions on sizing or care are welcome; we read and answer every message ourselves.