We found this 酒盃・受皿 — shuhai and ukezara in Kanazawa, at 片岡光山堂, in November 2025.

What made the moment particularly satisfying was that I recognised the names before the shop owner explained them to me.

The base carries the name 栄喜堂 · Eikidō, while the painted inscription is associated with 鮎山 · Ayuyama. By then, I had already come across both names in my own research into Kutani, so there was a small moment of recognition when I picked the piece up.

The shop owner told me that 栄喜堂 no longer exists.

I remember finding that slightly amusing, because I had already recognised the name — and 鮎山 as well — before he said anything. It was one of those moments when all the looking, reading and remembering suddenly connected with the object in my hand.

From what I have been able to trace afterwards, surviving pieces marked 栄喜堂 and 鮎山 are repeatedly associated with Kutani production of the Meiji period. The exact founding and closure dates of 栄喜堂 remain difficult to establish, and I have not found a reliable biography for 鮎山. The evidence suggests that 栄喜堂 was the workshop or decorating house, while 鮎山 was likely the painter or decorator’s art name.

The shuhai is very small, but the decoration is anything but restrained.

Red enamel and gold cover much of the surface, with figural scenes, flowers and patterned borders compressed into a very small space. The matching ukezara continues the same decorative language, so the pair feels complete despite its scale.

This is one of the reasons I enjoy older Kutani so much.

There is a confidence in the colour, ornament and density that feels very different from the quieter ceramics I also collect. It does not try to disappear into the table. It wants to be noticed.

栄喜堂 · Eikidō
九谷焼 · Kutani-yaki
鮎山画 · Ayuyama-ga
酒盃・受皿 · Shuhai / Ukezara

One porcelain shuhai with matching ukezara, decorated in red enamel and gold with figural and floral motifs
Shuhai approx. Ø 5.2 × H 2.8 cm
Ukezara approx. Ø 7.5 × H 1.5 cm

Kanazawa / Ishikawa, Japan

Estimated date: Meiji period, late 19th–early 20th century
Acquired in Kanazawa, November 2025
片岡光山堂

Reference
栄喜堂 · Eikidō — workshop / decorating house
九谷焼 · Kutani-yaki — Kutani ware
鮎山画 · Ayuyama-ga — painted by Ayuyama
酒盃 · Shuhai — sake cup
受皿 · Ukezara — matching saucer / small supporting dish
明治時代 · Meiji period — 1868–1912