Figures of courtesans, gods, demons, special characters, and animals in Japanese export ceramics of the late 19th and early 20th centuries are highly decorative and appealing to many collectors today. This study presents an engaging text and over 300 beautiful color photographs of exquisite and amusing three-dimensional figures in Hirado, Imari, Kutani, Satsuma, Studio works, and Sumida wares. When they came to the popular attention of the Western world at the 1862 International Exposition in London and the 1876 Centennial Fair in Philadelphia, they created a sensation and have held a prominent place in Oriental arts ever since. Marks of the artists appear with their works. This reference will be cherished in every collector's and Asian arts library. AUTHOR: Nancy Schiffer has studied many private and museum collections of Japanese ceramics around the world to compile this fascinating story. Her select collection has grown over a twenty-five-year period while she continually finds new forms to challenge identification. Her previous three books in this field include Japanese Porcelain 1800-1920, Japanese Export Ceramics 1860-1920, and Imari, Satsuma and Other Japanese Export Ceramics.
