Description: Ornate antique 1800s Meiji Period Japanese smoking set. Equipped with two bronze vessels. Much of the silk has come off the latticework. Inside a drawer is a letter from Harishin, Collector of Fine Art Curios: "This "tabako-bon" smoking set had been preserved by the famous temple Honganji in Kyoto and was sold for the improvements of the temple at the action [auction] Kyoto." Harishin was a shop mentioned in the 1906 edition of "Guidebook for Tourists in Japan." This letter probably dates from the teens. The Honganji temple constructed a large gate in 1911 -- it is possible that this piece was sold as part of a fundraising effort to that end. Measures 9-1/2" wide and 8" high with handle down.