The subtle features of this Kibune River stone from Kyoto prefecture in Japan make this a true suiseki. The uneven, somewhat rough surface of the top and the gradual rising prominences in the back is more like a setting found in nature than a smooth flattened area with prominent mountains in the distance. The beauty in a Japanese stone should be subtle and with suggestive features. The subdued dark red color more closely aligns with the Japanese sense of aesthetics. The shallow carved wood base follows the stone’s contours and doesn’t compete with the viewer’s attention. 

Some western stone collectors think that a good Japanese suiseki should be black with a smooth surface and distinctive features. This thinking reflects an idealized western concept of Japanese suiseki rather than a deeper understanding of Japan’s aesthetics.

Shikishima was once in the collection of Kobayashi Soseki, an early leader in Japanese suiskei and director of the Aiseki Museum in Gifu. The stone’s poetic title comes from a waka poem by Prince Arisugawa Taruhito written at the end of the Edo period. The writing on the front panel of the storage box (kiri-bako) reads “Kibune-ishi, Shikishima by Kobayashi Soseki, Director of the Aiseki Museum.” The backside of the opening panel reads, “The spirit of Shikishima is in the nice Japanese ladies who put seeds to have flowers.” Shikishima is the name of a very ancient place in Japan. This stone is 27 cm wide, 4 cm high, and 10 cm deep and appears to have a natural bottom, but we think this stone may have been bottom cut and then worked to make it appear natural.