Asian Loft - Products

Although the Japanese put wheels on cabinets for entirely utilitarian purposes, these wheeled chests today are favourites among collectors, who find them an interesting contrast to the many other styles of Japanese tansu.
Wheeled chests were used in both shops and homes, so a variety of styles evolved with the basic form of a box on wheels. Those built for use in rural areas are plain but lovely, while those used by wealthy merchants or in the homes of the rich were more elaborately constructed, with the addition of purely decorative wood carving and/or metalwork.
Wheeled chests emerged between early and middle Edo (1603-91/1691-1780), making them some of the oldest chests still found today. They were built in great quantities until the middle of the Meiji era (1868-1912) when productions levelled off quickly with the emergence of mass production techniques, which were used to create other, more easily constructed tansu instead of these massive, old-fashioned chests. Early pieces are identified by thick, solid boards of zelkova wood and simple, heavy, impressive ironwork. Old rural pieces are primitive, but solid, in appearance, most often with the series of horizontal slats on the sliding doors continuing around the sides of the chests.
Wheeled chests were produced at major tansu-production centers throughout Honshu, but the majority originated in northern Yamagata and Iwate prefectures.

KAIDAN DANSU
93013

93013 - Kyoto - late 19th C.

A freestanding staircase with built-in storage compartments, this type of chest was used, most often in rural areas, to connect the ground floor and the loft of a home or shop. The large two- or three-piece staircase chest would have been used in large houses or shops, whose ceilings were higher than those of urban houses.
As the staircase idea evolved during the late Edo period (1780-1868), clever craftsmen also realized the space efficiency of building compartments into the body of the staircase. In old Japanese shops, the chest stored goods and supplies, while in homes it was used for household articles.
Staircase chests evolved during the late Edo period in rural areas for local use. Earlier pieces may seem ungainly at first sight, with their height appearing disproportionately tall in relation to their width and length Since the majority of the chests are built of cryptomeria or cypress, and since no major changes in construction and style occurred during the Meiji era, it is sometimes difficult to determine age, although thick wood for steps and drawer fronts usually indicates an older chest. Also the used metal work often tells us more about the period because of the different styles, for example, drawer handles in the warabite or hirute styles are earlier than the gumbai style.
Staircase chests originated in northern Honshu-specifically, the regions around Sendai, Niigata, and Yonezawa, and much of Iwate Prefecture. The reason for their development in these areas probably stems from the fact that the spacious country homes and shops in the north were constructed with a large space between the ground floor and the loft, which necessitated a staircase. Later, production spread tot Gifu, Toyama, Fukui, and Ishikawa prefectures as the influence of furniture craft from the Japan Sea coast reached these regions.

The Japanese medicine chest with its numerous, tiny drawers has become one of the most popular collectibles among small Japanese cabinetry. The chests were used as long ago as the tenth century by doctors and medicine peddlers, and in pharmacy shops, to store the many herbs, roots, tree barks, flower petals, tea leaves, powders, minerals, and even dried insects considered of medicinal value. By the early sixteenth century, medicine chests were being produced and used on a wide scale in Japan. In addition to the stationary chests used in pharmacies and by doctors, portable models were used by travelling medicine peddlers in rural areas.
Medicine chests were produced on a large scale early in the Edo period (1603-1868), they comprise some of the oldest of Japanese cabinetry .
Because of their long history in Japanese life, these chests were produced locally in villages all over Japan by the beginning of the Edo period and continuing through the Meiji era (1868-1912).

Multi-drawered and bearing heavy ironwork, the conveniently sized merchant chest is a favourite for homes and offices even today. It belonged to a shop merchant and it was kept in his shop in full view of the public, and was used to store his account books, ink and writing material. It represented the shop owner's prosperity, so it was constructed of good materials and heavy ironwork. These chest are quite appealing and are usually good investments.
It contains numerous drawers of various sizes and one or two sliding door compartments of varying size and placement. In a typical chest, a single, wide drawer stretches across the top, beneath which a sliding door compartment and then a set of drawers are located. Along the right side of the chest runs a vertical series of three to five small drawers, some with and some without locks. This chest can contain two sliding door compartments, so the second set of sliding doors is located at the bottom, extending across the full with of the chest.
Sado Island is where merchant chest production began in the mid-Edo (1691-1790) period, but soon thereafter, these popular chests were produced all along the northern Japan Sea coast, especially in the Niigata area.

Kimono dansu are chests used to store kimono and clothing. They originated from craftsmen in the Sendai region, and are often made of zelkova wood with drawers lined in cedar. Kimono-dansu are characterised by one long top drawer, with three slightly smaller drawers underneath. There is usually a lockable door containing two smaller drawers. Kimono dansu are known for their elaborate ironwork - commissioned from former sword makers after the Samurai were disbanded in the Meyi era.

Sturdy 2-piece stacking style and usually a few compartments of drawers inside of the bottom chest.

Almost every family had one of these futon cabinets in the old days for storage their futon. Japanese people don't sleep in a bed as we do but on a futon on the ground on a kind of mat called tatami. Because of very limited space in the houses, they usually fold these during daytime. The size of the futons explains why the futon cabinet is usually quite deep. Often there are some hidden compartments inside the cabinet where the people kept the family precious.

The hinoki wood is a Japanese cypress while the drawers are in Keyaki wood, which comes from the Zelkova tree.

The most appealing aspect of the kitchen cabinet for most people is its spacious and versatile storage area. Conveniently placed inner shelves, sliding doors, and deep drawers make this chest perfect for storing dishes, crockery or other tableware. Owners have been known to convert these ample chests into linen chests, freestanding libraries, and even stereo cabinets.
Typical construction is a two-piece chest-on-chest arrangement with sliding doors in the bottom chest. They come in various sizes.
Below the sliding doors are a series of horizontally spaced drawers of equal sizes. For the bottom cabinet, the most usual design is two large sliding doors that conceal a series of shelves and compartments.
Overall design is simple and functional since this cabinet was used daily in Japanese kitchens.