Kutani Porcelain Bowl and 5 Cups Set Red Aka-e Phoenix Gold Rim Japan Mark

A Japanese Kutani porcelain set comprising one larger bowl and five small cups, painted by hand in iron red with a phoenix among flowering branches, coral sprays and foliage, and finished with a thin gold band at every rim. The base of one piece carries the red painted Kutani mark, read vertically.  The red on these pieces is aka-e, an overglaze iron red applied after the first firing and fixed in a second, lower temperature firing. Because the pigment is brushed rather than printed, the line quality shifts from piece to piece: the phoenix on the bowl is drawn with a loaded brush and long strokes, while the sprays on the cups are quicker and thinner. Kutani kilns in Ishikawa Prefecture have worked in this palette since the seventeenth century, and the thin walled, gold rimmed export versions were made in quantity for tea and sake service from the late nineteenth century onward.  Condition is very good. All six pieces ring clean and no chips or cracks were found on the rims or feet. The gold banding shows light wear in places consistent with use, and the red has softened slightly on the most handled cup.  No rule measurement was supplied for this set.