A Japanese Antique Hand Carved Granite Temple Lotus Lantern, Meiji era (1868-1912)

This the first example of this hard to find round -maru- temple style with lotus leaf carved top , we have had in over five years.

Also known as a “Yukimi” granite stone lantern or -snow lantern- because of its broad roof), four pieces,

Measures: 28″ high and 28 inches wide,

A beautiful example hand carved in fine quality granite. -suited for the finest garden.

Rare style. Hand carved. Nineteenth century.

History of Yukimi lantern:

Yukimi-dōrō (雪見燈籠?) or legged lanterns have as a base not a post but from one to six curved legs, and a wide umbrella with a finial either low or absent. Relatively low, they are used exclusively in gardens. The traditional placement is near water, and a three-legged lantern will often have two legs in the water, and one on land but today they enjoy wide spread popularity placed in many different settings and in many different styles of gardens. The umbrella can be round or have from three to eight sides, while the fire box is usually hexagonal.

Yukimi denotes water reflection.

It was probably developed during the Momoyama period, but the oldest extant examples, found at the Katsura Villa in Kyoto, go back only to the early Edo period (17th century). (Thank you wikpedia)

Provenance: Old Shiga garden.