Marks & Signatures

The Meizan studio used a small, consistent set of marks, and in its prime it used one above all: “Yabu Meizan” (藪明山) in gold within a square cartouche. This page sets out what museum records, auction catalogues and published research actually document, gives some cautious dating hints, and separates confirmed features from claims that cannot yet be confirmed.

A mark is evidence, not proof. Satsuma signatures worked as studio or brand marks, and satsuma-database stresses that the quality of the decoration, not the mark, must decide an attribution.1,2 Even the major auction houses catalogue some pieces bearing a Meizan inscription as “after Yabu Meizan”.3,4

The documented studio marks

1. “Yabu Meizan” (藪明山) in a gilt square cartouche: the standard mark

This is the mark found on most of the studio’s work. The Victoria and Albert Museum records it as “‘Yabu Meizan’ in a square gilt panel” on pieces acquired in 1910.5,6 Auction catalogues describe the same mark as “in a square cartouche”, “within a gilt square seal” and, on the 2017 presentation vase, “in a double square reserve”.7,8,9 Studio advertisements used the seal as a trademark. Gotheborg’s mark no. 874 is taken from an advertisement of 1904.2,10 Satsuma-database dates its dominance from the early 1890s onward.2

藪明山 Yabu Meizan: gold on a white ground
藪明山 Yabu Meizan: gold on a white groundThe square gilt cartouche painted straight onto the glaze. Yabu (藪) is the family name and Meizan (明山, literally “bright mountain”) the art name. Satsuma-database presumes a white-ground seal dates to no later than about 1900. Bonhams, however, dates this small vase to about 1910, so treat the presumption as a hint, not a rule.Photo © Bonhams. Bonhams, New York (online), 16 December 2025, sale 31201, lot 1. Thumbnail linked to the lot.
藪明山 Yabu Meizan: gold on a gold ground
藪明山 Yabu Meizan: gold on a gold groundThe same seal, here reserved on a gilt square of a different tone, on a genuine miniature vase. Satsuma-database presumes this form dates to after 1900. Bonhams catalogues the lot as late 19th or early 20th century.Photo © Bonhams. Bonhams, New York, 16 September 2026, sale 31888, lot 1066. Thumbnail linked to the lot.
The seal as a trademark, 1904
The seal as a trademark, 1904The square 藪明山 seal printed on Meizan’s English-language business card above the words “Our wares all bear this mark” and “One price only”. The card is in the Adele Quinette Phelps World’s Fair Chronicle of 1904.Missouri Historical Society, via Wikimedia Commons. Public domain.
Advertisement, 1903
Advertisement, 1903A studio advertisement with the seal, from the back pages of A Handbook for Travellers in Japan (1903). Gotheborg’s mark no. 874 is taken from an advertisement of 1904 (see note 10). It is shown there, not reproduced here.Wikimedia Commons, from the Internet Archive scan. Public domain.
藪明山 written, with a red seal
藪明山 written, with a red sealThe front of the 1904 card. The name 藪明山 is written vertically, with a small red seal below. This is the studio’s stationery, not a mark on a pot.Missouri Historical Society, via Wikimedia Commons. Public domain.
藪明山 Yabu Meizan
藪明山 Yabu MeizanOne of two “Yabu Meizan” marks reproduced in Lawrence’s directory (entry 130b, “Meizan Yabu”, p. 242; Lawrence prints two entries numbered 130 on this page, and the letters are ours). Lawrence does not state the medium or ground.From Louis Lawrence, Satsuma: The Romance of Japan (2011), p. 242. Used with permission of the rights holder.
藪明山 Yabu Meizan
藪明山 Yabu MeizanThe second “Yabu Meizan” example in the same entry. Here the characters are reserved on a dark square.From Louis Lawrence, Satsuma: The Romance of Japan (2011), p. 242. Used with permission of the rights holder.

2. “Meizan sei” (明山製, “made by Meizan”): the early mark

This gilt mark appears on a small number of early pieces. The Osaka Museum of History’s charger with a white elephant and Chinese children, dated before about 1890, carries it.11 So do a children’s-procession beaker sold at Bonhams in London in 2014 and a covered jar sold at Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr in Paris in 2025.12,13 Satsuma-database suggests it was the forerunner of the “Yabu Meizan” seal, used probably until the early 1890s. It also notes that no documentation shows how the studio signed in 1880–1885.2

明山製 Meizan sei, “made by Meizan”
明山製 Meizan sei, “made by Meizan”The early gilt mark, on the children’s-procession beaker sold in 2014. Read from the right: 明山 (Meizan), then 製 (sei, “made”). Satsuma-database places this form before the early 1890s.Photo © Bonhams. Bonhams, London, 15 May 2014, sale 21861, lot 467. Thumbnail linked to the lot.
明山製 Meizan sei
明山製 Meizan seiLawrence’s example of the same mark, in his directory entry for Yabu Meizan (130b, p. 242).From Louis Lawrence, Satsuma: The Romance of Japan (2011), p. 242. Used with permission of the rights holder.

3. “Dai Nihon Meizan sei” (大日本明山製): exceptional pieces

大日本 (“Great Japan”) is also romanised “Dai Nippon”. This archive uses “Dai Nihon” throughout, as in the Bonhams catalogue entry cited below.

The longer form, “Meizan of Great Japan”, is documented on a large early charger with a white elephant and children, sold at Bonhams in New York in 2022. Bonhams compared it with a near-identical charger in the Khalili Collection.14 Satsuma-database describes this mark as reserved for exceptional pieces.2 It is uncommon. It does not support the idea that any mark beginning “Dai Nihon” is suspect, nor that any such mark is genuine.

大日本明山製 Dai Nihon Meizan sei, “made by Meizan of Great Japan”
大日本明山製 Dai Nihon Meizan sei, “made by Meizan of Great Japan”The mark on the large white-elephant charger sold in 2022, which Bonhams dates to about 1890. Read from the right: 大日本 (Dai Nihon, “Great Japan”), then 明山製 (Meizan sei).Photo © Bonhams. Bonhams, New York, 21 September 2022, sale 27600, lot 710. Thumbnail linked to the lot.
大日本明山製 Dai Nihon Meizan sei
大日本明山製 Dai Nihon Meizan seiLawrence’s example. His caption reads: “This mark is very scarce and was put on exception pieces.” This agrees with satsuma-database (note 2).From Louis Lawrence, Satsuma: The Romance of Japan (2011), p. 242. Used with permission of the rights holder.

4. Impressed marks: rare, and only alongside the gilt mark

A few pieces combine the gilt mark with an impressed one. A small vase sold at Bonhams in 2025 was “signed on the underside in gilt and with an impressed signature Yabu Meizan”.15 A large vase from the Kasten collection, sold in 2017, carried gilt “Yabu Meizan” with an impressed “Meizan”.16 In both, the impressed mark accompanies the gilt seal rather than replacing it. Who applied it is not documented. It may have been a blank supplier or the studio itself. Note that Gotheborg describes the unrelated Kanazawa Meizan as “generally signed or impressed Meizan”.10

Gilt seal with an impressed mark
Gilt seal with an impressed markThe underside of the small vase sold in 2025, which Bonhams describes as “signed on the underside in gilt and with an impressed signature Yabu Meizan”. The impressed mark is the faint recessed shape to the left of the gilt seal. It cannot be read at this size.Photo © Bonhams. Bonhams, New York (online), 16 December 2025, sale 31201, lot 1. Thumbnail linked to the lot.
An impressed mark
An impressed markLawrence also illustrates an impressed mark, captioned only “(impressed)”, in his Yabu Meizan entry. It is not legible in the reproduction.From Louis Lawrence, Satsuma: The Romance of Japan (2011), p. 242. Used with permission of the rights holder.

5. “Meizan” (明山) alone: Yabu Tsuneo, after 1926

Plain “Meizan”, without “Yabu”, is attributed by Louis Lawrence, Bonhams and Gotheborg to Meizan’s successor Yabu Tsuneo, after Meizan’s retirement in 1926.2,10,17 The dating is not entirely settled. Satsuma-database considers whether plain “Meizan” could also have been Meizan’s own earliest mark, and concludes that it should remain attributed to Tsuneo.2 Against this, a bowl in the Tanabe Collection at the Shigaraki Ceramic Cultural Park is dated to the Meiji period and recorded with a seal mark reading only 「明山」.18 Until that conflict is resolved, a plain “Meizan” mark should be treated as needing expert review.

明山 Meizan alone
明山 Meizan aloneTwo plain “Meizan” marks (directory entry 131), which Lawrence captions as “used by Yabu Tsuneo, Meizan’s adopted son, after his own retirement in 1926”. Note the conflict: the Shigaraki bowl dated to the Meiji period also carries a seal reading only 明山 (note 18). The museum does not permit reproduction, so its mark is not shown here.From Louis Lawrence, Satsuma: The Romance of Japan (2011), p. 242. Used with permission of the rights holder.

6. “After Yabu Meizan”: inscribed pieces outside the studio

Bonhams has catalogued a large covered vase inscribed in gilt “Meizan” as “after Yabu Meizan”. In 2026 it sold an incense burner inscribed “Yabu Meizan” as “after Yabu Meizan”, offered together with a genuine signed miniature vase.3,4 These cataloguings show how much the specialist trade relies on the quality of the painting, not on the mark alone.

藪明山 on a piece “after Yabu Meizan”
藪明山 on a piece “after Yabu Meizan”The incense burner Bonhams sold in 2026 as “after Yabu Meizan”. It carries a gilt square seal reading 藪明山, which even copies the circle-and-dot form of 明. Bonhams judged the piece by its painting, not by its mark.Photo © Bonhams. Bonhams, New York, 16 September 2026, sale 31888, lot 1066. Thumbnail linked to the lot.
“Yabu Meizan – Forgery”
“Yabu Meizan – Forgery”Lawrence’s example of a forged seal: “Note the lack of flowing lines in the calligraphy and the unsteady hand.”From Louis Lawrence, Satsuma: The Romance of Japan (2011), p. 242. Used with permission of the rights holder.
“Dai Nihon, Yabu Meizan”: a fake
“Dai Nihon, Yabu Meizan”: a fakeLawrence notes that “no attempt has been made to imitate the usual Yabu Meizan mark”, yet the mark is “none the less a fake”. It is reproduced at the low resolution of the book.From Louis Lawrence, Satsuma: The Romance of Japan (2011), p. 242. Used with permission of the rights holder.

Dating hints (tentative)

The following hints come from satsuma-database’s reading of the evidence. They are presented there as presumptions, not documented rules.2

  • “Meizan sei” generally indicates an early piece, probably before the early 1890s.
  • Gold seal on a white ground probably indicates a date no later than about 1900.
  • Gold seal on a gold ground of a different tone probably indicates a date after 1900.
  • Plain “Meizan” is attributed to Tsuneo after 1926, with the caveat above.

The character 明: a circle and a dot

A distinctive feature of the studio’s calligraphy is the left-hand element of 明 (“mei”). It is drawn not as the usual box-like 日 but as a circle containing a dot.2 The same form appears in Tsuneo’s plain “Meizan” mark.2 Satsuma-database reports Louis Lawrence’s observation that there is one known exception, which it connects with exceptional work.2 The feature is a useful point of comparison, but a copyist could imitate it, so it is not proof of authorship on its own.

明: circle and dot (genuine vase)
明: circle and dot (genuine vase)The left part of 明 on the gold-ground seal of the genuine miniature vase, enlarged and contrast-enhanced. It is drawn as a circle with a central dot.Photo © Bonhams. Bonhams, New York, 16 September 2026, sale 31888, lot 1066. Thumbnail linked to the lot.
明: circle and dot (“after” piece)
明: circle and dot (“after” piece)The same element on the incense burner catalogued “after Yabu Meizan”. The circle and dot are reproduced, which shows why the feature is not proof on its own.Photo © Bonhams. Bonhams, New York, 16 September 2026, sale 31888, lot 1066. Thumbnail linked to the lot.
明 on the Dai Nihon mark
明 on the Dai Nihon markOn the Dai Nihon Meizan sei charger, the left part of 明 is drawn in another seal-script form, not as a circle and dot.Photo © Bonhams. Bonhams, New York, 21 September 2022, sale 27600, lot 710. Thumbnail linked to the lot.
A standard 日
A standard 日For comparison, the 日 (“sun”) of 大日本 on the same mark: the usual box with a central bar.Photo © Bonhams. Bonhams, New York, 21 September 2022, sale 27600, lot 710. Thumbnail linked to the lot.

Marks most often confused with Meizan’s

Kanazawa Meizan

A separate decorator who signed “Meizan sei”, identified by Louis Lawrence. According to satsuma-database it is the only other “Meizan” of comparable quality, and so the main risk of confusion.2 The Osaka Museum of History records period copies of Meizan’s work marked 大日本帝国加賀金沢明山製 (“made by Meizan of Kanazawa, Kaga, Great Imperial Japan”).19 The two accounts frame this differently: the museum treats these pieces as imitations of Meizan, while Lawrence treats Kanazawa Meizan as a separate maker.

Other “Meizan” signatures

Several Satsuma decorators used the name. Gotheborg lists Hododa Meizan (保土田明山).10 A gilt square seal on a red ground reading 京都 明山 (“Kyoto Meizan”) is judged by Oriental Antiques not to be Yabu Meizan.20 According to Joe Earle, as cited on Wikipedia, Meizan’s success led another workshop to use his name and imitate his style without matching its subtlety.21

Kinkozan (錦光山)

The large Awata workshop in Kyoto, associated with Kinkozan Sōbei VII (1868–1927), which also supplied blanks to Meizan.22,23 Kinkozan pieces carry their own marks, sometimes with a painter’s name such as Sozan.24

Ryozan and Seikozan

Okamoto Ryozan decorated for the Yasuda Company of Kyoto.25 Other makers signed with different characters also read “Ryozan”, so the kanji matter.10 Seikozan is associated with fine Kobe Satsuma.22 Both produced crowded, miniature-scale work that can resemble Meizan’s at first glance.

Lookalike marks compared

Kanazawa Meizan: 明山
Kanazawa Meizan: 明山A freely written 明山 from Lawrence’s entry for the Kanazawa Meizan workshop (127), which he says “also undertook work for Seikozan”. Lawrence adds that the signatures in this group may belong to more than one artist named Meizan.From Louis Lawrence, Satsuma: The Romance of Japan (2011), p. 241. Used with permission of the rights holder.
Kanazawa Meizan: 明山製 Meizan sei
Kanazawa Meizan: 明山製 Meizan seiA “Meizan sei” seal from the same Kanazawa entry. Compare it with the Yabu “Meizan sei” above: the reading is identical.From Louis Lawrence, Satsuma: The Romance of Japan (2011), p. 241. Used with permission of the rights holder.
Kanazawa Meizan: 明山製 Meizan sei
Kanazawa Meizan: 明山製 Meizan seiA second Kanazawa “Meizan sei” seal from the same entry.From Louis Lawrence, Satsuma: The Romance of Japan (2011), p. 241. Used with permission of the rights holder.
保土田 明山 Hododa Meizan
保土田 明山 Hododa MeizanCaptioned by Lawrence “Meizan, Hododa”: 明山 with 保土田 (Hododa), below a Shimazu cross. It is not a Yabu mark.From Louis Lawrence, Satsuma: The Romance of Japan (2011), p. 235. Used with permission of the rights holder.
錦光山造 Kinkōzan zō, “made by Kinkōzan”
錦光山造 Kinkōzan zō, “made by Kinkōzan”A Kinkozan mark below a Shimazu cross, from Lawrence’s entry for the Kyoto workshop.From Louis Lawrence, Satsuma: The Romance of Japan (2011), p. 237. Used with permission of the rights holder.
亮山 Ryōzan (Okamoto Ryozan)
亮山 Ryōzan (Okamoto Ryozan)The mark Lawrence gives for Okamoto Ryozan (entry 147), the leading decorator for the Yasuda Company. Lawrence lists other makers called “Ryozan” whose marks use different characters.From Louis Lawrence, Satsuma: The Romance of Japan (2011), p. 243. Used with permission of the rights holder.
精巧山 Seikōzan
精巧山 SeikōzanA Seikozan seal from Lawrence’s entry 156, which he captions “Seikozan sei”. The last character in the reproduction looks like 造 (zō) rather than 製 (sei). Both mean “made”.From Louis Lawrence, Satsuma: The Romance of Japan (2011), p. 244. Used with permission of the rights holder.

What we cannot confirm

The following claims appear in collectors’ literature and online. None of them is supported by the museum records, auction catalogues or published research consulted for this archive. Do not use them as tests of authenticity.

  • Raised-gold (kin-moriage) signatures. No museum or auction record consulted describes the Meizan seal as raised.
  • A rectangular seal. The documented cartouche is square, according to the V&A, Bonhams and satsuma-database. “Rectangular” appears only in dealer descriptions.5,7,2
  • A double-gourd seal. Double-gourd vessels with the standard mark exist, but no gourd-shaped seal is documented.
  • Red or black enamel seals. No genuine example has been found. The red-ground “Kyoto Meizan” seal belongs to another decorator.20
  • Crackle visible beneath the gold mark as a sign of authenticity. No source found.
  • A “black-dot rim” as a Meizan hallmark. This is a dealer’s claim with no scholarly confirmation.
  • “Meizan II” as a mark. Tsuneo is not recorded as signing in this form.2,10

The marks register

Each entry below records a mark type, the sources that document it, and its verification status.

AllSquare
AllGold on white ground
AllYabu Meizan (藪明山)Meizan sei (明山製)Dai Nihon Meizan sei (大日本明山製)Meizan (明山, Tsuneo/post-1926)Other

0 shown / 7

No marks match these filters.

Mark documented
verified against the sources cited on the mark’s own page.
Lookalike / other decorator
a similar mark used by another studio or decorator, shown for comparison; not a Yabu Meizan studio mark.
Under review
the reading or dating is still being checked against sources; not yet counted as documented.

Notes and sources

  1. Satsuma-database, “Marks & Makers”. www.satsuma-database.com/marks-makers-1
  2. Satsuma-database, “The Meizan Studio (1880–1941): Yabu Meizan and Yabu Tsuneo” (synthesising the research of Nakano Tomoko, Osaka Museum of History). www.satsuma-database.com/masters-from-edo-meiji-and-taisho-period/8-the-meizan-studio-1880-1941-yabu-meizan-and-yabu-tsuneo
  3. Bonhams, New York, 13 September 2017, sale 24293, lot 1287 (“after Yabu Meizan”). www.bonhams.com/auction/24293/lot/1287/a-large-satsuma-vase-and-cover-after-yabu-meizan-meiji-era-1868-1912-late-19th-century
  4. Bonhams, New York, 16 September 2026, sale 31888, lot 1066 (“Yabu Meizan and after Yabu Meizan”). www.bonhams.com/auction/31888/lot/1066/yabu-meizan-1853-1934-and-after-yabu-meizan-a-miniature-satsuma-vase-and-a-satsuma-incense-burner-meiji-era-1868-1912-late-19thearly-20th-century-2
  5. Victoria and Albert Museum, C.252-1910. collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O171087/bowl-yabu-meizan-workshop
  6. Victoria and Albert Museum, C.231-1910. collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O496033/vase-yabu-meizan-workshop
  7. Bonhams, New York, 16 September 2014, sale 21786, lot 2128. www.bonhams.com/auction/21786/lot/2128/a-miniature-satsuma-vase-by-yabu-meizan-meiji-period-late-19th-century
  8. Bonhams, London, 7 November 2019, sale 25429, lot 137. www.bonhams.com/auction/25429/lot/137/a-satsuma-cylindrical-brushpot-by-yabu-meizan-1853-1934-meiji-era-1868-1912-late-19thearly-20th-century
  9. Bonhams, New York, 13 September 2017, sale 24293, lot 1286. www.bonhams.com/auction/24293/lot/1286/yabu-meizan-1853-1934-a-large-and-highly-important-satsuma-presentation-vasemeiji-era-1868-1912-early-20th-century
  10. Gotheborg.com, Satsuma marks (including nos. 477 and 874). gotheborg.com/marks/satsuma.shtml
  11. Osaka Museum of History, collection feature “Yabu Meizan”. www.osakamushis.jp/collection/bijutsu/yabumeizan/yabumeizan.html
  12. Bonhams, London, 15 May 2014, sale 21861, lot 467. www.bonhams.com/auction/21861/lot/467/a-satsuma-beaker-by-yabu-meizan-meiji-period
  13. Bonhams Cornette de Saint Cyr, Paris, 15 October 2025, sale 30765, lot 2. www.bonhams.com/auction/30765/lot/2/yabu-meizan-1853-1934-une-jarre-satsuma-avec-son-couvercle
  14. Bonhams, New York, 21 September 2022, sale 27600, lot 710. www.bonhams.com/auction/27600/lot/710/yabu-meizan-1853-1934-a-large-and-fine-satsuma-chargermeiji-era-1868-1912-circa-1890
  15. Bonhams, New York (online), 16 December 2025, sale 31201, lot 1. www.bonhams.com/auction/31201/lot/1/yabu-meizan-1853-1934-a-small-satsuma-vasemeiji-era-1868-1912-circa-1910
  16. Bonhams, New York, 15 March 2017, sale 23784, lot 6245. www.bonhams.com/auction/23784/lot/6245/yabu-meizan-1853-1934-a-large-and-fine-satsuma-vasemeiji-era-1868-1912-late-19th-century
  17. Bonhams, New York, 11 September 2019, sale 25575, lot 875 (Yabu Tsuneo, active after 1926). www.bonhams.com/auction/25575/lot/875/yabu-tsuneo-active-after-1926-a-pair-of-gourd-shaped-satsuma-vasesshowa-era-1926-1989-20th-century
  18. Shigaraki Ceramic Cultural Park, Museum of Contemporary Ceramic Art, digital museum feature on Yabu Meizan. digital-museum.sccp.jp/osusume/kamiwazanippon/yabu
  19. Osaka Museum of History, special exhibition “Meizan Satsuma no bi” (31 August – 24 October 2005). www.osakamushis.jp/news/2005/meizan.html
  20. Oriental Antiques, “Japanese porcelain marks”. orientalantiques.co.uk/uncategorized/japanese-porcelain-marks
  21. Wikipedia, “Yabu Meizan” (citing Library of Congress authority file; Yamazaki Tsuyoshi in Impey and Fairley 1995; Earle 1999; Launius 2020). en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yabu_Meizan
  22. Kiyomizu Sannenzaka Museum, Kyoto, special exhibition “Kyoto Satsuma ware”. sannenzaka-museum.co.jp/en/special_exhibition/%e4%ba%ac%e8%96%a9%e6%91%a9-3-2
  23. Walters Art Museum, Baltimore, 49.2280, “Bowl with a Multitude of Women”. art.thewalters.org/object/49.2280
  24. Bonhams, New York, 11 September 2019, sale 25575, lot 881 (Sozan for the Kinkozan workshop). www.bonhams.com/auction/25575/lot/881/sozan-for-the-kinkozan-workshop-circa-1900-a-large-and-fine-satsuma-vasemeiji-era-1868-1912-early-20th-century
  25. Bonhams, New York, 11 September 2019, sale 25575, lot 879 (Okamoto Ryozan for the Yasuda Company). www.bonhams.com/auction/25575/lot/879/okamoto-ryozan-for-the-yasuda-company-a-fine-satsuma-incense-burnermeiji-era-1868-1912-late-19th-century

©2026 Yabu Meizan.