Japanese or Chinese metal vase

Hi

Could you please identify this vase. There are some marks one in gold and one on a bottom. My oriental language pretty bad so can't read these signs.
Would be nice to know when and where it was made.

Thanks in advance

 

Looks Japanese, but from the form only; I cannot read Asian characters, but those don't appear Japanese or Chinese...perhaps Korean?

 

Stylistically it looks Japanese and later 20th century in period. The mark on the side looks like 中ム which directly translates as 'medium' although it is more likely to be representative of something else, perhaps a name or motive. I can't make out what the base characters are though.