Dutch Colonial Double-Sided Sawasa Box

This is the finest sawasa box of its type that we have seen. It is very well proportioned, and feels elegant in the hand.

The shape of this elongated oval box, is based on that of a 17th century Dutch tobacco box.  The box is double-faced – the top and the bottom are equally decorated, as are the sides. The lid is detachable.

Decorated with the sawasa technique (also known as Tonkinware), the box is decorated in black high relief against a gold, tooled ground. Shown on both the top and the bottom are scenes of pagodas amid trees and flying birds, and on one side a person in a small boat can also be seen.

The indented side, with traces of gilding, is engraved all the way around with chrysanthemum blooms and foliage.

The interior is gilded.

Most sawasa items were produced in Japan for the Dutch in the 17th and 18th centuries. It is also possible that sawasa items were commissioned by the Dutch from artisans in (or near) Batavia in what was then the Dutch East Indies (largely, modern Indonesia today), or from Tonkin (what is now northern Vietnam). The items were not necessarily made to be sent to Holland but for use by the Dutch who were residing in Asia at the time.

Sawasa items were made from an alloy of copper with gold, silver and arsenic which were then finished with a surface decoration of black lacquer and mercury fire gilding (gold plating). Sawasa items typically have panels that are chiseled in high relief with intricate patterns and Oriental scenes.

Related examples of sawasa elongated, oval boxes are illustrated in de Bruijn (1998, pp. 69).

The box here is in fine condition and is without dents, splits or repairs.

See a further example here and here.