Help With Box Translation

[JPGH]

Hello everyone,

 

Can someone please help with translating part of the inscription found on the lid of this old wooden box?

 

 

 

 

Thanks in advance for your help.

 

P.S.

the box houses an old netsuke

[JPGH]

Can someone please help?

[Curran]

I cannot even see it.

There are some very capable people here, but probably the silence is because it is too difficult to see.

 

You may have to take a stab at writing out what you can see on paper and presenting.

[SteveM]

Impossible for me to read. The first one looks vaguely like 扇 (fan). 

Usually you get a description of the contents, a year, and possibly the person who made it, or the person who wrote the description. This one is too far gone for me to take a guess at anything but the first one, and even that is a wild guess. 

[JPGH]

Thank you both and I appreciate your replies.

 

I tried my best below to get better images, I hope you all can help?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[SteveM]

Third one looks like 形 (shape). A logical guess would be 扇子形 (in the shape of a fan). And from there your mind would fill in the blanks, and you would assume the whole thing would read 扇子形根付 (netsuke in the shape of a fan). 

 

However the 2nd kanji looks nothing like 子 and the final kanji are unreadable, so the writing remains a mystery. 

[JPGH]

Thanks so much for trying to help, Steve, most appreciated!

 

I know the inscription is very hard to decipher due to the lid's darken tone, but could it be possible the name 'Shuzan' is there?

 

Or something possibly matching whatever is written on these two box lids below?

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Bazza]

Jojo,

 

On your original box lid query you might want to investigate infrared photography.

 

Best regards,

BaZZa.

[mywei]

Hi Jojo,

 

Your last pic of the box I believe states [法眼吉村周山之作] and [仙人] in larger letters

"Hougen Yoshimura Shuzan kore saku" "Sennin (sage)". I believe Hougen is a monk/priest title bestowed.

 

I'm bad at reading script like in your photo of the hakogaki but at a cursory glance the first couple of lines states Yoshimura Shuzan was from Osaka and was a student of 牲川充信 Niekawa Mitsunobu, and had the Hogen title.

 

Hope that helps

[k morita]

Hi,

 

 

[Jean]

Outstanding as usual, Morita sama.

[SteveM]

Looking at Matt's post and the box, I note the box indicates the name of the teacher was Katsuragawa （桂川）as Morita-san says, but in fact the name of Shuzan's teacher seems to indeed have been Niegawa（牲川）. Careless mistake by the writer of the box, or an alternative name used by the artist? 

 

https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E5%90%89%E6%9D%91%E5%91%A8%E5%B1%B1

[JPGH]

Thank you all some much for your help, I really appreciate it.

 

BaZZa, infrared photography is probably going to be the way to go on my box lid. I'll look into this process and see what I can find.

 

Thanks again everyone for your help.