Four Japanese Lacquered Sake Cups Meiji Period

An assemble of four lacquerware sake cups from Meiji period Japan circa late 19th century. The shadow cups on an elevated stem were used by the nobles during to drink sake at feast. Each with individual Maki-e design; some with high relief takamaki-e elements in combination with low relief hiramaki-e. Three cups have red background and one with gold background and the design of hibiscus blossom. One red cup features a fine design of longevity and auspicious symbols including the conch, coin, Lingzhi mushroom, and fairy's fan on the base; One features Urashima Tar?, a protagonist from the Japanese fairytale "The legend of Urashimako", who rescued a fairy turtle and was rewarded to a trip to the dragon's palace under the sea. The last one features "the Takasago story", a popular noh drama about an old married couple who are the spirit of the twin pines named Takasago and Sumioe, the symbol of the eternal marital bless and love.
The height ranges from 1-2". The diameter varies from 4.5, 4.2, 4 to 3.5"