Ojime
Unknown Artist
19th century
Medium
Various alloyed metals
Dimensions
H. 9/16 in. (1.5 cm); W. 5/8 in. (1.6 cm)
Classification
Ojime
Culture & Period
Japan · Edo period (1615–1868)
Department
Asian Art
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Bequest of Stephen Whitney Phoenix, 1881
Accession Number
81.1.424.10
Art Historical Context
Nestled in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Asian Art collection, this petite ojime—a 19th-century bead from Japan's Edo period (1615–1868)—exemplifies the exquisite craftsmanship of everyday luxury. Crafted from various alloyed metals, it just 9/16 inch high and 5/8 inch wide, yet its compact form belies the technical mastery required to shape and polish such durable materials into a functional ornament. Bequeathed by Stephen Whitney Phoenix in 1, it whispers of a time when Japan, under the Tokugawa shogunate, fostered a golden age of artisanal innovation amid cultural isolation. Ojime serve...