Beschreibung:

Attributed to Yoshimura Shuzan, unsigned Japan, Osaka, 18th century, Edo period (1615-1868) Finely carved from hinoki (cypress) wood and superbly painted as Chinnan Sennin standing, holding his staff in one hand and the alms bowl, from which his dragon slowly emerges, in the other. He is wearing a long, loose-fitting robe cascading in voluminous folds. His face with an intense expression, the mouth agape showing rows of teeth, his long hair and beard neatly incised. The back with two himotoshi. HEIGHT 9.6 cm Condition: Good condition with old wear, one foot with a small chip, the colors well preserved. Provenance: Belgian private collection. Yoshimura Shuzan (died 1776) was a Kano school painter honored with the title hogen, made netsuke invariably carved from hinoki wood and painted, and never signed his netsuke, which makes it difficult to authenticate any of his works. One thing of note is that Shuzan was an avid painter, and his paint did not wear off so easily as suggested by some of the later works painted in the Shuzan style. The Soken Kisho, published in 1781, contains a drawing by Shuzan’s son, Yoshimura Shunan Mitsukuni, which matches the present netsuke. This, along with the superior quality of the carving and painting, highly suggests that this is an original Shuzan. Auction comparison: Compare a related saishiki netsuke of Ryujin, also attributed to Yoshimura Shuzan and dated to the 18th century, at Bonhams, Fine Japanese Art, 6 November 2012, London, lot 160 (sold for 9,375 GBP).