Lanterns

Due to my special request to L. Kanamori San we are lucky enough to have few infos about these Japanese bronze hanging lanterns. Are hexagonal form on six supports with openwork side panels including a hinged door, with a wave pattern on the roof, each corner of the roof have a bell, upperside you can handle and link to an iron chain. 400 years ago, Mr.Toshinaga Maeda controlled the Etchu and Kaga area. He decided building a castle in Kanazawa city. In order to prosper the outskirt area of castle, he set up a metal plant in Kanaya Street. That was how Takaoka Doki started. In the first period, Iron is the only material they used, for producing living goods and agricultural tools, for example, fry pan, Tea kettle, spatula, hoe and so on. In the middle of Edo period, for increasing demands about copperware products, especially in Japanese religion field most of the families needed Buddha pieces and its accessories. Later from Meiji to Taisei the quality were steadily enhanced as well because lots of demands. In 1975, he was the first one authorized in Takaoka city as a Special Industrial Area by government. Now, Takaoka is well-known copperware art city and the art value has become a common sense in Japan. These tree lanterns are made in Takaoka city, Toyama. One is made by Nakamura, the another one is made probably by another company. Lanterns have been making from several years ago, the dragon design is no more produced. Material of lanterns is copper. In particular way one of them have a design of a tung tree leaves with castle roof, in Japan, the tung tree leaves image was only used by imperial family. So it is a classic and honorable design. till now, people loves it. Another one have a dragon design, in Japan and China, dragon means god or emperor, so it is popular design.