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japanfanbev

japanfanbev

Northampton, UK

Hello. I taught English in Sapporo (the capital of Japan's north island, Hokkaido) in 2003/4. During my time there a Russian friend introduced me to kokeshi dolls atHello. I taught English in Sapporo (the capital of Japan's north island, Hokkaido) in 2003/4. During my time there a Russian friend introduced me to kokeshi dolls at a shrine sale; I've been collecting them ever since. She hoovered up any dento (traditional) kokeshi collections, so I decided to focus on the "omiyage" (souvenir) kokeshi, specifically 1950s-1970s nodders. I do have a few non-nodders & at least one of each strain of dento kokeshi as well. I also have other mementos of Japan like a pair of Hina kimekomi dolls, lots of tea & sake cups, a beautifully sculpted wooden bear and various things made of kimono fabric. (Read more)

Posts

New purchases - cabinet & giant kokeshi - Dollsin Dolls
Kimekomi Hina Dolls - Dollsin Dolls
Other kokeshi (1960s & non-nodders) - Dollsin Dolls
1950s nodder kokeshi collection - Dollsin Dolls

Comments

  1. This is what is known as an “omiyage” (souvenir) kokeshi. My collection are mainly omiyage, as I collect 1950s-1970s nodders. Omiyage kokeshi are not usually signed, as they were made by a variety of...
  2. …and here’s a page with more of this artist’s works… http://www.soulportals.com/kokeshi/Album%20Traditional/TSUGARU/Abo%20Muchihide/index.html
  3. Actually that was much easier than I thought - I found a match for you - Abo Muchihide http://www.soulportals.com/kokeshi/Album%20Signatures/Tsugaru%20Owani%20Traditional/index.html#Abo%2520Muchihide_...
  4. Hello, it’s definitely an ejiko kokeshi, representing a baby in a basket, as farmworkers would have kept their babies in olden times while they were working the fields. I’m not sure which strain/ko...
  5. She is of a type known as donko kokeshi. They usually come as a male and female pair.
  6. They are kokeshi, classed as “omiyage” (souvenir) kokeshi, probably made during the kokeshi boom period 1950s-early 1970s. I believe they are meant to represent acorns.
  7. I think I’ve found a match for the (beautifully clear) ejiko’s signature: Sato Minoru in the Naruko style, as I suspected.
  8. The kokeshi on the left is an ejiko (baby in a basket) type of dento (traditional style) kokeshi doll. She looks to be of the Naruko style - I’ll see whether I can find the signature for you on the So...
  9. Hello, actually she is a sosaku (creative) kokeshi doll, rather than a dento (traditional) doll. The best places to look for signatures are either the soul portals or kokeshi wiki sites, although it’...
  10. The photo of the signature isn’t coming out clear enough for me to see, but I recommend looking through the signature database for Naruko kokeshi here... http://www.soulportals.com/kokeshi/Album%20Si...
  11. Wow, you’ve picked up quite a collection there! Where shall I start? Most of them appear to be omiyage (souvenir) kokeshi and I imagine a lot of them are nodders (they have moving heads, attached by ...
  12. I have a similar one and believe it represents a “Mai dancer”.
  13. You’re welcome.
  14. PS. I have a Matagoro kokeshi in my collection too, which is why I recognised the style. Mine is shown in the last picture of the page I linked above.
  15. Hi, it’s a Matagoro kokeshi - see this link - http://www.soulportals.com/kokeshi/Kokeshi%20Village/Shingata/Matagoro%20Kokeshi/index.html the same design is shown in the first picture, although the p...
  16. Hi, I think it’s a Yukinko kokeshi, which depicts a “snow child”. They are distinguished by their pointed hats and yours looks like it has a scarf on as well.
  17. You're welcome. I just love the quality of Japanese craftsmanship. It's probably down to the fact that they hold their top craftspeople in such high esteem, calling the very best "living national trea...
  18. Hi, I think it could be a Japanese writing box. See this article for more info... http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/jabo/hd_jabo.htm The quality of the decoration would certainly suggest that it wa...
  19. Hello Melanie, they are called "nemariko" kokeshi because they appear to be sitting down. The shape is a little different from "ejiko" kokeshi (modelled on babies which were kept in baskets by their m...
  20. Thanks Jewels :) I'm so thrilled with it - most of my kokeshi collection had to be kept in drawers until I got this. Now it lives on a chest of drawers in my bedroom and is virtually the first thing ...
  21. Thanks Soulportal - have already admired your kokeshi in the past!
  22. Thanks racer4four. I bought the black stand in Japan, although I think it's originally Chinese - it features in a couple of my older posts too. I just looked at your amazing art glass collection - wo...
  23. Think the ones with holes in their heads are toothpick holders...
  24. Hi, Yes, I'd definitely say it was a kokeshi doll. Obviously it's not a traditional ("dento") kokeshi doll, so it's what's termed as a "creative" kokeshi where the original artist has more freedom to ...
  25. Thanks Nancy. Glad you looked me up! Have just added a pair of bookends to the collection. Trying not to add anything more until I get my own place!
  26. PS. The round wooden stand/shelves were bought in Japan (from a shop selling Asian Arts) they had miniature teapots etc on display on theirs. I believe they are Chinese. I was looking for a second o...
  27. Thanks Amber, I remember being taken to a flea market in Japan about 9 1/2 years ago and finding my first few kokeshi - I've had the bug for collecting them ever since. Needed to specialise a bit, o...
  28. I've now put my collection of 1950s nodder kokeshi on this site - you will see that I also have a collection of 7 lucky gods - mine are actually fixed to a stand and I think all still have their origi...
  29. As you might be able to tell from my posts I love kokeshi too. I started off by buying a bit manically from flea markets when I lived in Japan, but have specialised to 1950s nodders in the years since...
  30. I bookmarked it myself too!
  31. Just found this website with kokeshi artists' signatures on it. http://www.soulportals.com/kokeshi/KokeshiArtist.html Hope that helps!
  32. Hi. I just found this website with a lot of signatures of kokeshi makers on, you may want to check yours against the signatures there... http://www.soulportals.com/kokeshi/KokeshiArtist.html
  33. For some reason there don't appear to be very many kokeshi books in English. However I treated myself to Kokeshi - wooden treasures of Japan by Michael Evans & Robert Wolf for my birthday last year. I...
  34. Hello. You seem to have a mother & son pair which have been left with bark still showing - the wording is probably the name of the hot spring ("onsen" in Japanese) where they were bought as a souvenir...
  35. I think the "baby" one is NOT Japanese, but a Korean version. However I LOVE the bookends and your Tokyo tower kokeshi - I've been looking for both of those types to add to my collection for ages, but...
  36. This is definitely a traditional kokeshi doll. With a lot of them you can move their heads a little (left & right) which makes a "crying" sound. You can find out which area it's originally from by the...
  37. These are definitely "creative" kokeshi. Most likely date is 1950s onwards. They've been in the sunlight for too long at some stage which has darkened the wood. The blue paint can fade, so you've been...
  38. I've been collecting kokeshi since I lived in Japan 10 years ago. Yes, I believe these are pretty rare! Even better to have a pair. Lucky you...
  39. The seven were almost certainly representing the seven lucky gods. See this website for full details, names & which implements they should have... http://www.onmarkproductions.com/html/seven.shtml
  40. This is a fantastic collection of traditional (round heads & cylindrical bodies - sometimes the heads "cry" when you move them) style & "maiko" (trainee geisha - those with buns & red kanzashi in thei...
  41. This is a Korean version of the Japanese kokeshi dolls. Someone bought me one once, it had a head that was on a spring mechanism. I gave it to a charity shop, as I only collect Japanese kokeshi - most...
    42. See more

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