A Japanese Imari style porcelain table bell, featuring hand-painted overglaze iron-red chrysanthemums highlighted with fine gilt detailing, interspersed with underglaze blue floral and rockwork motifs. The bell is surmounted by a tapered, fully gilded porcelain handle and terminates in a delicate scalloped rim edged in gold. The interior retains its original porcelain clapper suspended from a ceramic loop by a twisted wire.

Historical & Style Details

• Subject / Sitter / Source: Chrysanthemum and rockwork motifs in the Imari taste
• Origin: Japan
• Material / Technique: Porcelain with underglaze blue, overglaze enamel, and hand-gilding
• Materials: porcelain, gold glaze, wire
• Markings: Unmarked
• Decorative Details: Scalloped rim, fully gilded handle, iron-red chrysanthemums with gilt veins, blue stylized foliage
• Colour & Surface: White ground with vibrant iron-red, cobalt blue, and bright gold accents
• Condition: Minor wear to the gilding on the handle and rim consistent with age, clapper and wire suspension intact and functional

History

Table bells of this type were popular export wares produced in Japan during the mid-20th century, drawing artistic inspiration from traditional Edo-period Imari and Kutani porcelain designs. Featuring the classic palette of underglaze cobalt blue, overglaze iron-red, and lavish gold highlighting, these decorative objects combined Western domestic utility with traditional Japanese ceramic aesthetics for the international market.