*THIS ITEM WEIGHS 3370 GRAMS WITHOUT PACKAGING, PLEASE SCROLL TO THE END OF THIS LISTING FOR SHIPPING DETAILS AND UPGRADES.

This listing is for an urushi lacquer midai made around 70-80 years ago.  A midai is a lectern reading desk with a slanted top.  It is an altar fitting used for reading scriptures, and unlike conventional lecterns, midai are low because they’re used by monks sitting on the floor.  The midai in this listing is made of wood and coated in black lacquer, and it is decorated with a sakura kamon family crest commonly associated with the Ota clan.  The slanted part folds in the centre, and the stand can be detached.  The detached parts are stored in the drawer part when not in use.  It is not uncommon for scripts and prayer books to be stored in the drawer as well. 

Urushi lacquerware refers to products that have been coated in natural lacquer collected from urushi trees. The process for lacquering items is long and very labour intensive, each item requiring multiple layers of lacquer that may take anywhere from six months to two years to complete. Heat and humidity are required to dry lacquer evenly and consistently, so Japan’s rainy season and summer months are ideal for this process. Urushi products are not only beautiful but also strong.

Sizes

Total Height:  50.7cm (19.9”)

Folding part:  H.3.4cm (1.3”) x 46cm (18.1”) across x 31.2cm (12.2”) from top to bottom

Stand parts in middle:  H.29cm (11.4”) x 22.2cm (8.7”) from front to back

Semi-circle part:  H.11.2cm (4.4”) x 15.1cm (5.9”) across

Box part:  H.16.8cm (6.6”) x 37cm (14.5”) across x 27cm (10.6”) from front to back

Condition

Overall it’s in pretty good condition but there are light scratches and scuffing everywhere. 

The folding part:  The lacquer has some minor cracks/splits, there’s scuffing, dents, scratches.  There’s also discolouration/cloudy lacquer, and some lacquer peeling from the edges. 

The stand parts in middle:  Light scratches, scuffing, and a couple spots of lacquer chipped off edges. 

Semi-circle part:  Light scratches, scuffing, worn edges. 

The drawer part:  Scratches, scuffing, some lacquer worn (mainly along edges), some lacquer has flaked off in places, one end broken off the thin metal plate that the handle is attached to.  There are many scratches on the bottom, some dents, chipped lacquer, scuffing, as well as general wear on the interior.

THESE ARE SHIPPING ESTIMATES BASED ON THE CURRENT GLOBAL SITUATION                

**Germany, France, Greece, Spain, Poland, Austria, Slovakia, Lithuania, Slovenia:  NO SHIPPING.  Very strict and expensive packaging laws in place and we are not licensed to send products to these countries.  We have no plan to register at this time because the process is in some cases very expensive and complicated, plus each country has its own set of regulations and application process. 

**USA: SAL Sea Mail (approx. 11-12 weeks), an upgrade for EMS Express (10-15 days) available for an additional 10,200 yen.

**UK , Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Switzerland, Norway: SAL Sea Mail (approx. 8-12 weeks depending on the destination), an upgrade for EMS Express (10-15 days) available for an additional 8550 yen. 

**Asia: SAL Sea Mail (approx. 6-8 weeks), an upgrade for EMS Express (7-10 days) available for an additional 3650 yen.

**Russia:  No shipping methods available.