Described by Bonhams as a presentation vase of exceptional importance, this square-sided vase holds the highest price in this archive. Each face carries a panel raised slightly in relief. One shows three macaques in a blossoming cherry tree, two others winter and autumn landscapes, and the fourth a party admiring chrysanthemums in bloom. The panels are edged with rings of dots within circles. Around them the ground is filled with scrolling vines and flowers, and chrysanthemums cluster on the shoulder below a neck banded with lozenges enclosing stylised dragons.
The vase came with a fitted hardwood stand that the cataloguer considered probably original. Its four-panel scheme can be compared with the large rectangular vase of about 1890 in the Khalili Collection (S 148), which also includes monkeys among its subjects. The underside is signed in gilt ‘Yabu Meizan’ within a double square reserve. Offered at Bonhams, Fine Japanese Art, New York, on 13 September 2017, lot 1286. It realised US$205,500 including buyer’s premium, against an estimate of US$80,000–US$100,000.