Things

Lithophane

A few weeks ago, I bought a curious Japanese tea set at a flea market. When you hold the tiny teacups to the light, you see a ghostly image of a geisha impressed in the porcelain at the bottom. I've since learned that these are Lithophane cups, produced from the 1920s through the '50s in dozens of designs. Some sake cups even came with Lilliputian nude geishas stamped in the bottoms. I adore them. Find your own on eBay.
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