Property of various owners KIRYŪ KŌSHŌ KAISHA (THE PIONEERING CRAFT ANDMERCEPANY)A Patinated Bronze Vase with Design of Flowers and Insects Meiji era (1868-1912), late 19th century The pear-shaped vase on a splayed foot with takazōgan decoration in gold, silver, bronze, and copper of various plants including bogbean ( mitsugashiwa ) and arrowhead plant ( omodaka ), amongst the foliage a dragonfly, a butterfly, and a frog, a twisted cord motif below the shoulder, signed on the base Kiryū Kōshō Kaisha sei 14 3/4 (37.5cm) high The Kiryū Kōshō Kaisha (Pioneering Craft andmercepany) was a public-private trading partner set up after Japan's successful participation in the 1873 Vienna Weltausstellung (World Exposition) with the aim of supporting high-quality Japanese crafts and promoting them globally. Bronze wares such as the present lot made under the auspices of the Kiryū Kōshō Kaishapany are celebrated for the excellence of their casting and patination and the elegance of their inlaid relief decoration, often featuring bird-and-flower scenes inspired by the Shijō school of naturalistic painting that took shape in Kyoto in the later eighteenth century.