The purpose of this trip is twofold: first, to investigate the current situation of the Japanese antique market; Second, look for the treasure of China living in a foreign land.
Osaka
The view of Osaka Castle
Osaka is the second largest city in Japan, located in the southwest of Honshu Island, and the second largest economy in Japan. Population and population density are second only to Tokyo, and water transportation, subway and commerce are highly developed. This is a brand-new international metropolis.
Nanpu Street, Osaka
Osaka new area
Unlike China, Japanese antique shops are highly centralized and decentralized. There are also scattered distribution in busy commercial streets and quiet alleys. Generally speaking, shops are not large in scale.
Nanpu and Shinsaibashi are the most prosperous centers in Osaka, where there are more than a dozen antique shops. Please visit them slowly! Japanese antique shops basically indicate "ancient art", "ancient bones" or "ancient ceramics" on their signboards, that is, antique shops.
Japanese antique shops in the streets
The place where Osaka antique market is relatively concentrated is called "Laosongtang" Street, and so is the adjacent street. The deserted Japanese antique market is chilling. Most shops have closed down, some are being transferred, and the glory of the past no longer exists.
The picture above shows the distribution of antique shops in Osaka's Laosongtong Antique Street. Merchants who pay money can see the store map on the map, but they can't find the map without paying money. The map shows that there are dozens of antique shops here
However, most of the shops have already closed down, which shows the current situation of Osaka Antique Street being "left out in front of the door".
Only the employment system of trade union members
On an antique street in Osaka, I came across a Japanese friend who opened an antique shop in Kyoto a few years ago. He has opened a shop in Osaka now.
He said that in the past two years, fewer people came to Taobao in China. Japanese antique business is becoming more and more difficult. In this street in Osaka, at most ten companies can open their doors now. The deeper reason is that Japan's economy is depressed and aging is serious, and most young people are not interested in antiques. More importantly, over the past decade or so, a large number of China people have flocked to Japan to buy in large quantities. They have bought almost everything in the hands of some Japanese antique dealers, even Japanese antiques.
Antiques in China are rising too fast. After the sale, most businesses are afraid to do it again, and there are fewer and fewer things to choose from, so fewer and fewer people from China come to Taobao. In addition to top Japanese collectors, they also buy top porcelain collections all over the world.
Bustling Osaka Commercial Street
Compared with the bustling commercial street, the antique market is really too deserted! Many antique shops are labeled "vacant rooms". My understanding of "being raised" is: an empty house is rented out. ...
Japan's antique shops can be roughly divided into three types: first, shops specializing in Japanese local antiques, and there are many such shops at present. Secondly, there are shops specializing in China antiques, and there are many such shops in three major cities. Third, a hodgepodge of China, Japanese and Western antiques.
An antique shop specializing in porcelain
An antique shop specializing in swords.
The characteristics of Japanese antique shops are mostly simple. They specialize in porcelain, bronze, bronze or bronze, Buddha statues and swords ... Of course, there are occasionally one or two bronzes or other miscellaneous items in porcelain shops, so you should be prepared to find them.
Don't myth the Japanese! Don't think that the Japanese know everything! Only a few Japanese antique people know all about China antiques, and many people have only a little knowledge. Some only know that things are old and don't know the specific age and price. Especially some shops dealing in Japanese antiques, you may have missed it. Some China antiques were put in a remote corner and no one understood them.
Antiques in Japanese shops are generally clearly marked, and the bargaining range will not be too large. The target is yen. Ten thousand yen, equivalent to RMB 620 yuan. For those antique shops that don't set prices, the owner may be a smooth operator, who knows China antiques like the back of his hand. He knows better than you, regardless of the age or our domestic prices, and basically has no omissions.
Look at these works I found in Osaka. It's not refined, but it's quite cheap.
Ivory business card box in the Republic of China
Three ivory business card boxes in the late Qing Dynasty and the Republic of China, totaling 6.5438 million yen, or more than 6,000 RMB.
The Han Dynasty bronze mirror
This bronze mirror of the Han Dynasty is first-class, costing 70,000 yen. Playing with teeth and mirrors is my forte.
Buying antiques in Japan is very particular. That is, if you don't buy something from him, you will never see anything better. Only when you buy it will he come up with more things for your reference. Like me, I am a clown. As long as people want to see it, I'll take it out from the bottom of the box. It doesn't matter whether I buy it or not. It is more important to make friends and give guests a relaxed environment. I never look at people with colored glasses.
When I went to Taobao, Japan, I just wanted to know. I don't believe this. They know the domestic market better than I do. There are many kinds of antiques, at least, I am good at one aspect.
People are in Tokyo, and the goods have arrived home.
Japanese players are more reliable. I usually leave after swiping my card and take small items with me. They are responsible for sending more things to my designated place. There has been no accident so far. You see, I bought a full box, people are still in Tokyo, and the goods have arrived in Beijing.
If you have enough time and patience and are not afraid of hardship, you will certainly gain something. The Japanese are not gods, they know everything! Especially the younger generation in Japan is the black sheep. They sometimes sell their ancestral collections as second-hand goods.
Tang Jing
This Tang mirror is not very good, it has rusted a lot. I haven't played before, but it's super cheap, 10 thousand yen, more than 600 RMB. What a waste of China's things. I really want to take her away.
Not everything in the shop is so cheap. I walked through nearly 200 antique shops before I found it. But on the whole, antiques in Japanese shops, like this general product, are still lower than our domestic prices. After arriving in Kyoto, it is basically certain that this trip to Japan is a free trip.
Porcelain; (China) China
Man struggles upwards, but water flows downwards. Antiques are the same, always rushing in the direction of high prices. In an era when our national strength is weak or cultural relics are not valued, antiques, whether fine or ordinary, are constantly flowing out. Now the whole people attach importance to antiques, and they are all market-oriented. Many people in China expect them to get rich overnight. As a result, antiques have become popular and soared in China, and things from all over the world have returned to this jar.
The development of antiques has its own development law. It develops with the development of national economy and grows steadily with the growth of national income. But nowadays, especially in recent years, antiques have become chess pieces in some people's hands, just like speculating in stocks and futures, deliberately pleasing and speculating on prices, and then speculating on this and that. The high price has nothing to do with our public collection and even with many collectors. The result of short-term speculation is to disrupt its own development law, which is tantamount to painting cakes to satisfy hunger. Who is ultimately hurt by pulling out the seedlings?
It's cheaper to buy the same coin from China in Japanese antique market. A few years ago, a friend went to Japan with ten of my calligraphy works, and I haven't heard from him since.