From 1868 to 1912, Emperor Mutsuhito oversaw an era of transformation in Japan. Formerly a country of feudalism and isolation, Japan entered an age of modernization influenced by newly established trade and exchange with the West. The Meiji period, or period of “enlightened rule,” also saw the global impact of the East Asian country’s culture. Japanese Meiji furniture was exhibited at expositions from Paris to San Francisco and created for export.
Prior to the Meiji era, furniture was mostly made by commission for the ruling class; now there were new domestic and international markets. European styles like Japonisme appropriated Japanese design while craftsmen in places like Wales and England employed japanning, a varnishing technique that approximated the appearance of lacquer for the surfaces of furnishings.
Meiji furniture made for Japanese homes and buildings constructed in Western styles resulted in taller tables, chairs, cabinets with large drawers and other features. The government invested in areas such as transportation and communication, and because people could freely choose occupations after the restrictions of feudalism, industries of various types were energized by expressive new ideas during those years. Art schools were formed and, for the first time, design was an area of study in the country, leading to the evolution of professional design as a career by the 1890s.
The work of Japanese designers was transmitted widely through lavishly illustrated pattern books that included designs for screens and lacquerware for the home. While screens today may be of use as decorative accents or partitions to ensure privacy in one’s space, Japanese screens were adorned with paintings and were featured in performing arts such as concerts, tea ceremonies and more. The color illustrations that characterize Meiji woodblock prints, a genre of Japanese art that grew out of 17th-century developments in printing and book publishing, depicted the sweeping changes that the era brought to East Asia.
Although it was a time of societal and cultural shifts, a bolstered interest in art and design elevated Japanese craft traditions. From colorful porcelain table lamps with silk shades and hardwood tables decorated with dark lacquer to cabinets featuring iron hardware and inlaid with mother-of-pearl, Meiji furniture showcased Japan’s artistic heritage to the world.
Find a collection of antique Japanese Meiji period case pieces and storage cabinets, decorative objects, wall decorations and more furniture on 1stDibs.
A Meiji period moriage cloisonné box and cover with two carp
Located in Lymington, Hampshire
A Meiji period moriage cloisonné box and cover with two carp, the rectangular box worked in coloured enamels in standard, moriage (raised) and musen (wireless) cloisonné with one gre...
Ceramic
A Large Japanese Meiji Period Porcelain Charger, Circa 1890
Located in Central England, GB
A Superb Large Japanese Meiji Period Porcelain Charger, Circa 1890 This large scale Japanese porcelain charger is finely hand-painted in rich c...
Porcelain
Pair of Meiji Period Japanese Bronze Vases with Mask Head Handles, circa 1900
Located in Central England, GB
A pair of Meiji Period Japanese bronze vases. This fine pair of late 19th century Japanese bronze vases are well proportioned and of a good decorative size. They are beautifully decorated with panels on one side with magpies amongst irises and the opposite with sparrows in a magnolia tree. They are cast and then finely hand finished with chasing from small chisels. They have mask head...
Bronze
Meiji Period Bronze of a Cricket Catcher
Located in Lymington, Hampshire
A Meiji period bronze of a cricket catcher, shown holding a whistle to his mouth with his left hand and a long rod in his right hand, wearing traditional clothing with a wide-brimmed...
Bronze
Group of Fourteen Japanese Meiji Period Gilt Metal Plaques
Located in London, GB
Group of fourteen Japanese Meiji period gilt metal plaques Japanese, Late 19th Century Height 2cm, width 2cm These beautiful Japanese Meiji period plaque...
Metal
A small fine quality Meiji period cloisonné enamel vase
Located in Lymington, Hampshire
A small fine quality Meiji period cloisonne enamel vase, with silver wires and gilt rims decorated with lappets of dragons of ho-ho birds on a brown ground, with textile designs arou...
Metal
Large Meiji Period Satsuma Earthenware Floor Vase
Located in Lymington, Hampshire
A large Meiji period Satsuma earthenware floor vase, the skittle shaped body painted in pastel overglaze enamels and gilding with a continuous frieze of the Seven Gods...
Enamel
$9,250
Meiji period bronze
Located in Atlanta, GA
Very fine Japanese bronze of two territorial beasts, on a decoratively carved teak base. The base is 34 inches long, the bronze is 29 inches long.
Bronze
19th Century Meiji Period Bronze of a Boy Collecting Sweet Chestnuts by Seiya
Located in Lymington, Hampshire
A charming Meiji period bronze of a boy collecting sweet chestnuts by Seiya, he carries a basket and is looking down at an insect crawling over his hand, he is also evidently wearing...
Bronze
Japanese Antique Small Apothecary Cabinet with 16 Drawers 1860s-1920s / Tansu
Located in Chōsei District Nagara, JP
This is an antique Japanese medicine chest (Kusuri Tansu) with 16 small drawers. It is believed to date from the Meiji to Taisho period (circa 1868–1926). Originally designed for or...
Iron
Meiji Period, Bronze, 'Literate Writing', 19th Century
Located in Beaune, FR
Bronze with brown patina Meiji period representing a scholar sitting writing. The subject is presented on a small square-shaped base resting on 4 small feet. Very nice original brown...
Bronze
Ikebana in bronze of an Hawk designed to display flowers hanged on the wall
Located in PARIS, FR
Bronze intentded for hanging (銅掛斜生, dô kakenanaike, « hanging bronze ») depicting a hawk, placed on a branch. The inside is hollow so a bouquet a flowers can be put inside and thus, ...
Bronze