Japanese antimony? tray

Hi folks

something i bought on ebay last week for 4+postage
knew it wasn't silver or fine, but quite like these, i think antimony pieces
because of the strong detailing
the base is very cheap looking, like a gun metal finish
has silver, copper, brassy and bronze tones which is mighty confusing

a little polish brings out the detail well as it was very dark, and the last piece i had sold well

maked SNK on base which doesn't strike me as japanese so unsure
haven't been able to find the mark anywhere

any thoughts or info appreciated

 

It looks Japanese to me, charlie, both the plate itself and the mark. Japanese marks are often in lozenge shaped cartouches.

 

brilliant thanks Aj, that all seems to fit together then

 

Agree with the above. The dark coloration on the bottom where there is plate loss sure looks like antimony. Antimony should be soft and bendable.

 

nice dragons Charles !

 

yeah they usually have really good detail i find, when they come up at local auction prices fly as people think they could be aged silver and the auction house doesn't seem to state that they are not for some reason

 

buyer beware???

 

It looks very Chinese to me, not Japanese. The way the dragons are depicted looks more Chinese, as does the scenery to my eyes. Japanese style is usually much more restrained than the Chinese, though of course this was most certainly made for the foreign market, and therefore a foreign taste and perception of what 'Oriental' should look like.

 

True, but it is definitely Japanese. Antimony ware is Japanese export ware, both for the Asian market and the Western market.
I must say I prefer antimony ware to Satsuma ceramics, also mostly made for export and often very ott and gaudy.

As an aside, I have a Japanese antimony box made for the Indonesian market. The design on the lid is borrowed from Javanese Djokja silver ware. They clearly knew their markets.

 

It's just gorgeous!