Beschreibung:

A RARE JAPANESE WOOD TOAD-FORM HAND WARMER the creature with its head raised and metal-lined mouth open, the chest area with a poetic inscription signed San'yo (Rai San'yo 1780-1832), the back carved with warts, the eyes inlaid, Edo period, circa 1820-30, 21cm long; the softwood box with hakogaki reading 'Hiki, te-aburi Shiko zoju" (toad, a treasured collection of Shiko, a hand-warmer), also with a label inscribed 'Jidai kiri gama teaburi' (a piece of antique item, paulownia wood, toad, hand-warmer) This hand-warmer is an unusual and fascinating object which exemplifies the mixture of humour and sophistication inherent in Japanese literati sensibility. Rai San'yo (1780-1832) was a noted Neo-Confucian scholar and philosopher, author of many books, Chinese classic poet, and a generous patron to literati and painters of the time. The inscription on the box indicates that the hand warmer was at one time in the collection of the painter Kojima Shiko (1889-1960) - a distinguished artist who showed his work at Government-sponsored exhibitions.