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It appears that the seal marking on this Kyosai painting I own does not match that on the list that was given to us by Josiah Conder, which appears as a no.10 on the Lavenberg website.

To me, it seems that the difference between the markings is due to too much ink being applied in some places and too little in others when being pressed. Additionally, I thought it might be caused by the seal breaking, but I am unsure.

Could someone help me solve this mystery or give your thoughts on the difference?







Link :Kyosai seals

No, I don't think the seal has been mis-applied, or that the ink was too much. These are different seals of the same two characters.

They look very much to me like wooden seals, rather than stone. I would find it hard to specifically say why I have this idea, but it has to do with the unresponsiveness of the material in which the characters have been carved.

Carving in stone creates a much more dynamic image than carving in end-grain wood.

Thanks for replying. It does make sense that these seals were wood from the impression. Do you have an idea if artists had multiple of the same seal that they used? As you mentioned, these appear to be different seals.

There is some margin in different seal prints made with the same seal but this never effects the general calligraphc appearance. Also should one be very careful using references reduced to a reproduced seal print without knowing the real painting it was taken from.
In your case the old book may even include however carefully produced woodblock prints (the most used method in reproduction of seals in the time in Japan).
But dont get me wrong the plates by Conder are only one part of a comprehensive study of a pupil and friend of the artist. If you would have used this book instead of only a reproduction of a reproduction and studied the painting technique and how the master views his subjects, you probably never could have reached the point to compare the seal at all.

peter

http://gankusworld.com/kawanabe-kyousai-16-arhats/

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