Ceremonial offering stand, one of a pair

Since ancient times, the Japanese have paid homage to Buddhist deities by making offerings of food on high-footed lacquer stands placed before painted or sculptural images. This pair of ceremonial stands was created in the early eighteenth century by the renowned lacquer artist Nagata Yu_ji, who adorned the background of lightly sprinkled gold with a stylized pattern of chrysanthemums, rendered in gold, mother-of-pearl, and silver. Because chrysanthemums are autumnal flowers, these stands might also have been used by an aristocratic woman to serve sweet round rice dumplings, reminiscent of the full, harvest moon.