Incense box in the shape of a rooster

Masters of the Japanese tea ceremony often burn incense before their guests’ arrival, to mask the smell of charcoal from the hearth. For this purpose, they store precious pieces of rare aromatic wood such as camphor and sandalwood in small lacquer or ceramic boxes called kōgō. Particularly beautiful boxes may be displayed in the tokonoma (alcove) within the tearoom, for the guests’ enjoyment. Nonomura Ninsei was one of Japan’s most renowned potters, whose innovative designs revolutionized “tea taste” in the late 1600s.