Sumida Gawa Pottery Suiban / Brush Washer with Two Climbing Figures, Signed Kōko, Meiji–taishō Period

A hand-thrown Sumida ware (隅田焼 / Sumida-gawa) lobed suiban or brush washer, Japan, late Meiji to early Taishō period, c. 1900–1920, signed Kōko and attributed to the potter Ishiguro Kōko (石黒光湖).

An iron-rich red earthenware body of heavily ribbed, wheel-thrown form, the exterior finished with the characteristic Sumida matte red "flashed" slip — here showing the extensive honest wear and flaking typical of the type, the slip never vitrified and wearing away in use to reveal the pale grogged clay beneath.

The interior and upper rim are covered in a deep olive-green glaze pooling thickly in the well, meeting a lustrous aubergine-red flambé band at the lobed and folded rim that drips irregularly down the exterior — the flambé effect typical of the workshop. The applied figural decoration is separately modeled and glazed in porcelaneous white, cobalt underglaze blue, iron-brown and green, attached to the body before the final firing.

Two three-dimensional figures of old men — each with a bald pate, tufted black hair, heavy brows and grotesquely expressive features — clamber over opposite sides of the rim as if climbing into the bowl. One is clad in a blue overgarment with a blue-and-white porcelain underrobe painted in underglaze cobalt, the other in a green glazed robe layered over a blue-and-white patterned undergarment, their bare feet and hands modeled in exposed red clay.

Below each figure the body is built up with applied craggy rockwork in dripping brown, olive and black glazes, suggesting the cliffs or rocks the men are scaling. Underside fully unglazed in the foot ring, revealing the red slip body and wheel-thrown concentric rings. Hallmark: applied porcelain teardrop cartouche to the lower body, painted in underglaze cobalt blue with the signature Kōko (香湖), consistent with marks associated with Ishiguro Kōko.

Condition: good antique condition, honest age-related wear consistent with period use — notably, extensive loss to the matte red slip on the exterior as is typical and expected of Sumida ware of this date, the slip by its nature not vitrifying and wearing away over time. No cracks or restorations. Please carefully regard all photos as they make an integral part of the listing, and reach out if there are any questions.

Dimensions: H 10.5 cm, D 18 cm. Weight 858 g.