Japanese ceramic canteen, Seto city.

[Staldion]

Hello guys, merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all of you.

I would like to ask you if you seen this ceramic canteen, ended yesterday on ebay, hope someone on the forum won it and could post his own pictures in the futur, as I've been unfortunatly sniped!

I think we still should discuss about it, at least I've a few questions about this item.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/RARE-WW2-JAP...vip=true&rt=nc












First thing, I don't believe the seller description at all, a camo paint for a tropical field, NO WAY! Wearing some fluo green sounds like a bad idea, and I don't see a IJA soldier taking such personal decision.

IMO this very late canteen has been made by some ceramist master, who cooked his work at least two time, first one to make the white kaolin shape, and another time with metal oxyd to get this look.

It's very interesting because even with metal shortage, time running out etc, someone did this canteen very very well. To me, this is more a piece of art than a rude late war production.

I would not be surprise that some high grade ceramist took a part in the war effort (almost all the japanese artists did the same, like Fujita for the paintings), but here with a lot of liberty in the final shape of the canteen, and this very surprise me.

I would expect some uniformity, but it seems to be big differences between every ceramic canteens.


The most amazing thing to me is thinking that late war, when the german believed only in wunderwaffen, the japanese went to war with handmade piece of art...


Do you think this theory could be good?
On the other hand there are still some very good ceramist in Japan today, everyone of them will be able to embellish late war canteen like this one with metal oxyd and nobody (at least not me) could say if it was done in 1945 or yesterday.

[Jareth]

First let me say that in my opinion it's not worth the end price. It's incomplete & the finish/color looks more like paint than fired glaze. I have seen glass & ceramic canteens before. Not that rare. They were late war, metal conserving variations

[Staldion]

Thanks for your opinion Jareth.
I am not a long time collector of japanese militaria like you, and I have to say that I like this field also because I learn something almost every day.

I've seen a few ceramics canteens, olive green, withe, withe with a different color on the top, they were going from 80 bucks up to $360, depending on how complete they were.
I would have expect more traces of brush, and more relief on the drippings on a painted canteen, and the 828 code seems free of any drippings.

What get me excited was the possibility it have been made by an experienced ceramist for the army. In the same way that some very experienced swordsmith who made great swords even in the last days of the war. I don't think ceramic are rare bird, but that was the first one I saw with such period decorum, so I though that this one may be rare or from some great maker. But now thanks to your input I understand you didn't see any ceramic canteen with that kind of color (in brought back exemple) so there is no evidence that they are period applied.


I appreciate your advice about the price too. You know I would had liked to post it before for advice but I agree with you about (not) posting open auction, and even more when I have a bid in it!
Someone was more excited than me about this one. I don't regret my bid, it was justified in the light of my little knowledge. Now thank to you I don't regret to have been outbid too.

I am still pretty sur it would have made a nice vase for a kadō arrangement in front of my gunto! I will have to find a cheaper one.

[Jareth]

You can always PM with live auctions. I'm happy to help offer my opinion