UROBORO

UROBORO (also spelled OUROBOROS,etc…) represents a serpent or a dragon biting its own tail and forming a circle. It appeared in almost all ancient cultures and had been important in religious and mythological symbolism, but has also been frequently used in alchemical illustrations, and was used to symbolise concepts such as completion, totality and perfection. It can be also seen as a circular never ending process where end meets start. This cyclic motion is typically encountered when collecting antiques. It is a coming and going of objects from the past, situations re-presented, vibrations of déjà vu. Every time such objects changes proprietary, the cycle starts again.

  • Raffia Textile #19, kuba people, dr Congo, circa 1940, cm 56x47 a genuinely vintage cloth of so-called 'Kuba velvets' showing nice age patina. ... read more
    price:  please enquire

  • Happi Coat, Japan, cm 86x124. Happi are those traditional Japanese work coats often wearing name of enterprise or related symbols, as sort of ... read more
    price:  Please enquire

  • Furoshiki Cloth, Japan, Showa (circa 1950), cm 105x103. Furoshiki were (and still are to some extent) wrapping cloths used when carrying small ... read more
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  • Jinken Haori, Japan, Taisho (1912-1926), cm 92x125. Sleeves are gracefully long, this kimono has smooth and soft touch.
    price:  SOLD

  • Banten with Dragons. Meiji Period, circa 1880, 88x117cm. Given the high risks, being firefighter in Japan in old days was ... read more
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  • Antique tsutsugaki Fabric Meiji Period, circa 1890, 167x129cm A futon cover having a design of a predatory animal, in this case a stunning tiger, ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Gorgeous tsutsugaki Futon Cover. Meiji Period, circa 1870, 153x126cm. In tsutsugaki technique, to create a pattern in several colors of indigo ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Rare Ainu Ceremonial Dress. Edo Period, circa 1850, 55x122cm. Starting from the end of the eighteenth century, in certain cases the ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Rare Tsutsugaki Futonji Couple. Meiji Period (circa 1890), 156x125cm and 156x124cm. a complete representation of the symbols cards for the spouses, thus ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • silk michiyuki coat, japan, taisho period.
    price:  SOLD

  • a ‘Nicholas de Staël’ silk Obi, Japan, Showa (circa 1950), cm 353x31. The ‘obi’ is a sash for traditional Japanese dresses, and ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Tsutsugaki ‘noshi’ futonji panel, Japan, Meiji (circa 1880), cm 96x33. a really lovely panel fragment from a bedding cloth (futonji), decorated in ... read more
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  • Kasuri cotton ‘flaming’ panel, Japan, Meiji (circa 1880), cm 99x33. ‘kasuri’ is the Japanese term for what is commonly knows as ikat ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Two cotton indigo panels with ‘waves’ and ‘wheel of the Law’ patterns, Japan, Showa (circa 1950’s), cm 150x35 each. An interesting find. ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • ‘Art Nouveau’ silk urushi Obi, Japan, Showa (circa 1940), cm 353x31. The ‘obi’ is a sash for traditional Japanese dresses, and a ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Indigo Kumo Shibori ‘zoikin’, Japan, Taisho (c.1920), 134x33cm. The common English translation of the Japanese word shibori is "tie-dye". However, a more ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Phoenix feather and pawlonia indigo tsutsugaki panel, Japan, Meiji (circa 1890), cm 157x32. Striking panel of hand-drawn rice-paste resisted tsutsugaki indigo cotton, ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Asa Katazome textile panel, Japan, Meiji (circa 1890), cm88x32. Katazome is a resist dye technique in which a paste of rice ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • ‘Stone pavement’ silk Obi, Japan, Showa (circa 1940), cm 341x31. The ‘obi’ is a sash for traditional Japanese dresses, and a part ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Indigo Kumo Shibori panel, Japan, Taisho (c.1920), 117x67cm. The common English translation of the Japanese word shibori is "tie-dye". However, a more ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Qashqa’i khordjin, south west Persia, second half 19th century, cm 77x72. a superb bagface with bit of condition issues. Having been used ... read more
    price:  please enquire

  • Baluch rug, late 19th - early 20th century, cm 84x69. Among the variety of things within textile art i am unaware of, ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Silk Shibori Obi, Japan, early Showa (circa 1930), cm 315x32. The ‘obi’ is a sash for traditional Japanese dresses, and a part ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Daghestan rug fragment, ne Caucasus, late 19th century, cm 61x80. What is that makes a Caucasian village rug really enjoyable in the end? ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Han juban, Japan, late Edo (circa 1840), cm 120x81. The ‘han juban’ is an half length garment which is worn under a ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • ‘Ume blossom’ large shibori cloth , Japan, late Edo (c.1850), 166x61cm. The common English translation of the Japanese word shibori is "tie-dye"; ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • ‘bundou- tsunagi’ shibori cloth , Japan, Meiji (c.1880), 139x33cm. The common English translation of the Japanese word shibori is "tie-dye"; however, a ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • ‘Web and stars’ shibori cloth , Japan, Taisho (c.1920), 101x33cm. The common English translation of the Japanese word shibori is "tie-dye"; however, ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Furoshiki cloth, Japan, late Meiji (circa 1910), cm 107x113. Furoshiki were (and still are to some extent) wrapping cloths used when carrying ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • ‘Stone pavement’ silk Obi, Japan, Showa (circa 1940), cm 355x31. The ‘obi’ is a sash for traditional Japanese dresses, and a part ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Katazome panel, Japan, early Meiji (circa 1870), cm75x33. This is a Katazome a cloth with a repeated pattern of butterfly ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Indigo shibori cloth , Japan, Taisho (c.1920), 66x33cm. The common English translation of the Japanese word shibori is "tie-dye"; however, a more ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Aigi, Japan, late Edo (circa 1850), cm 128x120. a mid-nineteenth century ‘aigi’ or ‘juban’, which are the Japanese names for an under-kimono. ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Yose juban, Japan, Edo (circa 1800), cm 130x60. The ‘juban’ is a garment which is worn under a kimono. As ‘yose’ means ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Oshie Doll, Japan, Meiji (circa 1880), cm 21x19. The doll making has been elevated to art form in Japan, and Oshie dolls ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Jabuye, Tibet, late 19th century, cm 77x60. This pillow rug (jabuye) is quite an interesting one, for its overall design is a ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • ‘Tiger’ han juban, Japan, Meiji (circa 1890), cm 94x54. The ‘han juban’ is an half length garment which is worn under a ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Wool and silk temple cloth, Japan, Meiji (circa 1880), cm 104x105. This is an ‘uchishiki’, a cloth used to decorate altars in ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • ‘Angels’ drawing for uchishiki, Japan, Meiji (circa 1880), 90x47cm. This item closely relates to the object next to it on this rr page. ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Boro futon cover, Japan, early Showa (circa 1930), cm 205x169. There is a class of Japanese folk textiles known as boro, which ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Silk Dragon Obi, Japan, Meiji (circa 1880), cm 292x32. The ‘obi’ is a sash for traditional Japanese dresses, and a part ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Tatoshi 5, Japan, late Edo (first half 19th century), cm 120x32. These remarkable pieces of patched and pasted papers (in a sort ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • The ‘skyscraper’ khaden, Tibet, early 20th century, cm 155x80. Tibetan rugs in so-called ‘tsuk-truk’ technique (woven in narrow stripes - then joined ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Tatoshi 4, Japan, late Edo (first half 19th century), cm 82x33. These remarkable pieces of patched and pasted papers (in a sort ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • Silk temple cloth, Japan, Edo (dated 1845), cm165x80. This is an ‘uchishiki’, a cloth of rich silk used to decorate altars in ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • ‘Hinomaru’ Fukusa, Japan, early Showa (circa 1930’s), 17x18 cm. a fukusa is a Japanese ceremonial square of cloth used to cover a ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • ‘Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon’ uchishiki drawing, Japan, Meiji (circa 1880), 94x49cm. An ‘uchishiki’ was a triangular cloth used to cover the front ... read more
    price:  SOLD

  • ‘Three Khorlo’ uchishiki drawing, Japan, Meiji (circa 1880), 76x41cm. An ‘uchishiki’ was a triangular cloth used to cover the front and sides of ... read more
    price:  SOLD