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Re: Invention of the Mouth Atomizer in Asia

Posted By: Jake Benson
Posted Date: May 14, 2008 (07:19 PM)

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The idea of a bamboo tube covered with gauze may very well be a variation of what I am looking for. So far, I have found references to the "powder blue" porcelain produced in the early Qing dynasty for the Kangxi emperor in Japan. These ceramic were sprayed with a glaze using a kind of primitive bamboo tube atomizer. I couldn't be sure if this was just a single tube with gauze, or a bent or two-piece instrument. Is "powder blue" porcelain older than the Qing dynasty?

A completely different reference that sounds more like what I'm interested in was provided by Richard Kruml. He authored an article in the Grove Dictionary of Art on the Japanese technique of Kirifuki 霧吹機 or Fukibokashi, used to create shaded effects in ukiyo-e prints during the Edo period.

"Fine spray effects were also achieved by blowing through a right-angled bamboo or metal tube,
of which one end was dipped into the pigment, which was distributed via a gap at the vertex by capillary action."

One more reference that I stumbled over is also interesting, for an image of what is reportedly early 18th century Japanese pump- atomizer (not all that different from the old fashioned pesticide sprayer!):

I have consulted Needham's Science and Technology in Ancient China, but found nothing pertinent, and a response today from the Needham Research Institute only told me that they did not have any pertinent info. I wonder if it may have been used in medicine, as the atomizer is a forerunner of nebulizer and inhaler technologies, as well as the airbrush and aerosol can.

Thanks!

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