Japanese antiquarians fix the date of the discovery of lacquer ware variously at A. D. 724 and 900. Echizen, from the first, has been noted for the abundance and luxuriant yield of lacquer-trees, and the skill of her workmen in extracting the milk-white virgin sap, which the action of the air turns to black, and which by pigments is changed to various colors. In the thirteenth century the art of gold-lacquering attained the zenith of perfection. Various schools of lacquer art were founded, one excelling in landscape, another in marine scenery, or the delineation, in gold and silver powder and varnish, of birds, insects, and flowers. The masters who flourished during this period still rule the pencil of the modern artists.
Kioto, as the civil and military as well as ecclesiastical capital of the empire, was the center and standard of manners, language, and etiquette, of art, literature, religion, and government. No people are more courtly and polished in their manners than the Japanese. The direct influences of court life have made themselves perceptibly felt on the inhabitants of the city.
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From General Nelson A. Miles
Thrilling Stories of The Russian-Japanese War, 1904
