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Occupied Japan Miniature Vase — Hand-Painted Satsuma-Style Court Lady, Raised Moriage Gilding, 2.75″

$20.00 Only one available

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Mid-Century (1940s–1960s) Gilt, Porcelain / Ceramic Very Good
HDRV-VR-0014
Turn this little vase over and there it is, hand-lettered in orange-red across the base: MADE IN OCCUPIED JAPAN. That mark only went on goods exported during the Allied occupation, roughly 1947 to 1952 — a five-year window that dates this piece almost to the year. Standing just 2.75 inches tall, it's a palm-sized survivor, painted in classic Satsuma style with a serene robed lady haloed in gold against a powder-blue sky.
  • Marked: "Made in Occupied Japan," hand-painted on the base — the collectible 1947–1952 export stamp
  • Decoration: Satsuma-style court lady in a red kimono, gold halo, stylized clouds and chrysanthemum-wave motif
  • Real hand-work: slip-trailed gold outlines that stand proud of the surface, plus raised enamel "pearl" beads (moriage) on the kimono
  • Colors: coral-red, powder blue, chocolate brown, and gold, with touches of green
  • Size: about 2.75" tall — a true miniature
Condition: Very good. The gilding on the rim and halo has softened with age, as old gilt nearly always does, and there are a few faint flecks in the blue ground. No chips, no cracks — structurally sound, with the hand-painting and raised moriage detail fully intact.
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Occupied Japan Miniature Vase — Hand-Painted Satsuma-Style Court Lady, Raised Moriage Gilding, 2.75"

Circa 1947–1952 (Occupied Japan)

Satsuma-Style Hand-Painted Porcelain

For a brief window after the war — roughly 1947 to 1952 — everything Japan exported had to carry the words hand-painted on this vase's underside: Made in Occupied Japan. Workshops were rebuilding an export trade from the ground up, and the terms of the occupation required them to mark their country's occupied status on the base of every piece that left the islands. Collectors seek those words specifically, and this little vase is one of the survivors that carried them across the ocean — small enough to have traveled in a suitcase or landed on a five-and-dime shelf and stayed there.

It came to us from a Youngsville, North Carolina estate. The painting is classic Satsuma style: a serene robed lady haloed in gold against a powder-blue sky, her red kimono detailed with slip-trailed gold outlines and hand-applied moriage 'pearl' beads that stand up off the surface. At about 2.75 inches, it is a true miniature — a great deal of patient hand-work for something that fits in the palm, and a tiny, datable keepsake of a very specific postwar moment.

Materials Hand-painted porcelain with slip-trailed raised gilt outlines and applied moriage enamel 'pearl' beads; gilt-trimmed rim.
Care Dust with a soft, dry brush or cloth. Protect the softened gilding from abrasion — no scrubbing, soaking, or dishwasher. Display away from direct sun to preserve the hand-painted colors.
From the Research Archives
vintagerose.us Catalog No. HDRV-VR-0014 • July 2026

Specifications

Dimensions
6 × 6 × 6 in
Weight
1 lbs
SKU
HDRV-VR-0014
Turn this little vase over, and the story is written right on the bottom in hand-painted orange-red: MADE IN OCCUPIED JAPAN. There's more history in those four words than in most pieces three times the size. For a brief window after the war — roughly 1947 to 1952 — anything Japan sent abroad had to carry that stamp. Workshops were rebuilding an export trade from the ground up, and the terms of the occupation meant they marked their country's occupied status on the underside of everything that left the islands. Collectors look for those words specifically. This is one of the pieces that carried them across the ocean, small enough to have traveled in a suitcase or landed on a five-and-dime shelf and stayed there. At about 2.75 inches, it's a true miniature — an ovoid baluster form you can close your hand around. The painting is classic Satsuma style: a serene robed lady, court figure or immortal, haloed in gold against a soft powder-blue sky wisped with stylized cloud. She wears a red patterned kimono above a coral-red shoulder and a rich chocolate-brown foot, with a green scalloped chrysanthemum-and-wave motif running through it and a gilt-trimmed rim to finish. Look closely and you'll see the hand-work is the real thing. The gold outlines are slip-trailed — they stand up off the surface, so you can feel them as much as see them — and the little white pearl dots on the kimono are individually applied raised enamel beads, the moriage technique done by hand. That's a lot of patient work for something that fits in your palm.
  • Mark: "Made in Occupied Japan," hand-painted in orange-red on the base (country-of-origin mark, 1947–1952 export window)
  • Style: Satsuma-style hand painting — robed court lady with gold halo, powder-blue ground, chrysanthemum-and-wave motif
  • Hand-work: slip-trailed raised gold outlines and applied moriage enamel "pearl" beads
  • Form: ovoid baluster miniature vase, gilt-trimmed rim
  • Colors: coral-red, powder blue, chocolate brown, gold, with green and orange accents
  • Size: approximately 2.75" tall
  • Provenance: from a Youngsville, North Carolina estate
Condition: Very good. The gilding on the rim and the figure's halo has softened and rubbed in a few places, the way gilt of this age almost always does, and there are a couple of faint dark flecks in the blue ground. No chips, no cracks, and it's structurally sound. The hand-painted charm and every bit of the raised moriage detail are fully intact — a well-kept little piece of a very specific moment.

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