An antique Japanese Kasane Tansu (stacking chest on chest) made of Kiri (Paulownia) wood. All original hand forged iron hardware including the stylized Mokko handles. Beautiful Japanese joinery including straight dovetail joints reinforced with hardened wood nails. Hinged door (often called the Theive's door) behind which lies two small drawers that held valuables. A secret box lies behind the bottom small drawer where extreme valuables were kept.

Age: Mid Meiji Era... Click for details

An antique Japanese Kasane Tansu (stacking chest on chest) made from Kiri (Paulownia) wood. All original hand forged iron hardware with full moon lock plates and curved Kakute handles. Side carrying handles features the rare locking pins used to connect the two sections together. Beautiful Japanese straight dovetail joinery is a testament to the expert craftsmanship used in making this chest.

Age: Early Meiji Era (1870-1880)

Dimensions: 30 1/4" Wide by 40 5/8" High by 16 3/4"... Click for details

An antique Japanese Choba Tansu (merchant chest) in a rare two section design made of Kiri (Paulownia) wood. All original hand forged iron hardware with full moon style locking plates and Warabite handles. Two sliding doors open to a storage area where merchant books and business records were kept. Recessed side handles on the tops of each section.

Merchant chests provided two important key elements for the store owner. The first was its functionality as a chest to consolidate the shop... Click for details

An antique Japanese Kyoto Mizuya Tansu (kitchen chest) in 2 sections made of Keyaki (Zelkova), Hinoki (Cypress), Kaki (Persimmon) and Sugi (Cryptomeria) woods. All original bronze hardware with burled Keyaki door panels and drawer fronts. Unique and natural thunder bolt-like grain pattern on the Hinoki wood frame. Side horizontal supports add strength and aesthetic beauty to the tansu. Inverted trapezoid shaped runners at the base of each sliding door.

Its original use was as a kitchen... Click for details

A rare an high quality Japanese Matsumoto Choba Tansu (merchant chest from the Matsumoto region of Japan) made of Keyaki (Zelkova) and Sugi (Cryptomeria) woods. All original hand forged iron hardware with full moon style lock plates and Warabite handles. Recessed side handles lift open to accommodate a wood pole through each handle allowing two persons to carry the tansu from place to place. Solid floating wood panels on the side, the top and the sliding doors were used to prevent cracks over... Click for details

An antique Japanese Ko Tansu (personal storage chest) made of Kiri (Paulownia) and Sugi (Cryptomeria) woods. All original hand forged iron hardware with auspicious Paulownia leaf lock plates and Warabite handles. The original finish was done in a wiped Urushi lacquer technique for both the drawer fronts and the tansu body.

It was used in a wealthy Japanese home to store personal effects, ephemera, writing tools, and other miscellaneous sundries. In a modern home, it would make the... Click for details

Antique Japanese Ryukyu Cha Tansu (display and storage chest for tea items). Lacquered black and inlaid with Mother of Pearl (Raden) in intricate and extraordinarily fine designs of noblemen and scholars in pavilion gardens. The upper portion has a compartment with four sliding panels. Below this are two open shelves inlaid with larger designs of birds on a blossoming dogwood branch. The lower portion has a large compartment with two large dowel-hinged doors on the left side and a rounded... Click for details

Antique Japanese choba tansu (merchant's storage chest). Made with keyaki (zelkova elm) wood frame and front. Sugi (cryptomeria) wood sides and top. 2 large sliding panels open to a large compartment. Below this are 4 drawers of various sizes. Iron hardware includes warabite shaped drawer pulls. Deep reddish wiped lacquer finish.

Age: Meiji Period (1868-1912)

Dimensions: 37" high x 35 1/2" wide x 18" deep

Japanese antique choba tansu (merchant's chest) with locking bars and safe box. Made with keyaki (zelkova) wood frame, hinoki (cryptomeria) wood drawer fronts, sugi (cypress) wood top and side panels. The upper portion has three large full-width drawers held into place with a locking bar. The lower portion has two medium sized drawers held in place with another matching locking bar. The lower right hand side has a safe box opened by a hinged door. Inside are four small drawers, one of... Click for details

Exceptional antique Japanese small personal box made with beautiful keyaki (zelkova) wood burl. Two small drawers on the top, one of which is outfitted with interior lidded compartments. Below, are 3 full-width drawers of gradating depth. Patinated bronze hardware with square drawer pulls on the larger drawers and flower bud pulls on the top drawers. A matching square handle on the top for carrying. Original translucent wiped lacquer finish shows of dramatic grain. Provenance: From a... Click for details