Cabinet - Cedar - Japan

Japanese Antique Mizuya Tansu — Bleached Cedar with Engraved Brass Lock — Meiji Period (ca. 1880–1910)

A characterful single-section Japanese **Mizuya-dansu** (kitchen chest), crafted during the Meiji Period (ca. 1880–1910). This piece combines the practical compartmental layout of a traditional kitchen tansu with the decorative ironwork typical of late-19th-century cabinetmaking in Japan.

The case is constructed of solid **Japanese cedar (Sugi, *Cryptomeria japonica*)**, finished in the elegant *shiraki* (bleached / whitewashed) aesthetic so prized by Western collectors today. The grain runs vertically across the door and drawer fronts in a strong, expressive pattern, and the surface bears the soft, weathered patina of more than a century of careful household use. Internal panels and the back boards are joined in the traditional Japanese manner with cedar planks, secured with hand-driven iron nails.