Catalog (1374)

Set of 6 large size 19th century engravings which when assembled comprise the bird’s-eye map of “The Siege of La Rochelle” engraved by Jacques Callot in 1629, Lieure catalog number 655. All images and paper are properly rectangular - distortions are due to photography, let me know if you want additional images. Each sheet has full untrimmed margins, the first photo is a composite of 6 images with margins being Photoshopped off - that is how the whole map will look like if one was to cut o...

19th century kokutan (ebony) netsuke of a sitting shishi (Buddhist lion), its tail up and its head turned to the left, mouth open in a wide grin. Represented beast is definitely male both because of its explicitely carved bottom and because its mouth is open emitting sound A (the first letter of Sanskrit alphabet), while the female shishi are depicted with closed mouth emitting sound N (the last letter). Wonderful expressive face, oversized powerful paws, superbly voluminous mane and bushy tail,...

19th century netsuke of a dog sitting on a woven mat with its front paw on a reticulated ball with a loose ball inside it. Excellent carving with great face and superb depiction of hair and woven mat textures. Beautiful wear and patina. Signed ICHIRA (alternative readings are Itsura or Kazura) in oval reserve on the bottom. Height 1 1/2 inches.

19th century netsuke of a fresh tangerine on top of a dried persimmon containing a minute landscape with houses and trees. Superbly carved elegant piece in Japanese taste, wonderful mellow patina and beautiful wear consistent with age. Great depiction of skin textures. Signed MASAYOSHI on the bottom - Sato Masayoshi was a brilliant artist, listed on p. 742 of NETSUKE & INRO ARTISTS AND HOW TO READ THEIR SIGNATURES by George Lazarnick. Elegant old piece in excellent condition. Length 1 11/16 inch...

18th century netsuke of sennin (Chinese sage) standing with one foot raised, clad in tiger skin skirt and holding in his hands tassels that support a large woven straw hat on his back. Strong early piece with superb smiling face, beautiful flow to the lines of his skirt. Wonderful wear to the surface from more than 200 years of handling, beautiful yellow patina turning light honey color on the back from wear against the silk of kimono, old age lines. Ivory of triangular section typical for 18th ...

19th century netsuke carved as a fox sitting on a base with 4-character seal bottom and scenes with lobsters and shells on the sides. This particular fox represents Inari - the benevolent and well disposed creature, being the messenger of the God of rice and harvest, as opposed to the other foxes, which in Japan are generally believed to be evil creatures. Enlargement 1 shows the seal flipped left to right presenting what the imprint of the seal will look like. Nice design, excellent carving of ...

Early 19th century decent size staghorn netsuke of a man wearing a robe decorated with design of numerous scarecrows and gently inclining his head towards his son that he carries on his back. Perfectly captured moment, excellent strong early carving, superb facial expression, wonderful depiction of scarecrows on his robe. Wonderful mellow patina, compact design, hollow parts of a stag antler on top and bottom are plugged (see photo detail) as is usual in such pieces and the plugs are carved as p...

19th century (late Qing Dynasty - 1890s to 1911) unusual Chinese scholar’s rock in a form of a large natural amber nugget. The piece is true Baltic amber, large for amber as material, can be viewed from 2 sides, and conveys a very good feeling of a lonely mountain with its surface weathered by years of exposure to wind and water. Wonderful internal energy in the piece produced by combination of shape, texture and color of the material. Later carved rosewood stand, not particularly impressive, ...

19th netsuke of two Tatebina - a male and female doll figures displayed during Hina Matsuri (Doll Festival), which starts on the 3rd day of the 3rd month. Of standing, flattened form with intentionally simplified doll faces and superbly incised floral patterns on the robes, nice wear and patina. Signed HOICHI on the back - for information on this excellent carver from Hojitsu school see NETSUKE & INRO ARTISTS AND HOW TO READ THEIR SIGNATURES by George Lazarnick, p. 476. Comes from the Jack Mang ...

19th century netsuke in of a boy wearing a short jacket and reading a book as he sits on the back of a resting buffalo. The subject seems to be a variation of bokudo - a theme of a perfect peace of mind, and one of the stages of a journey towards Buddhahood. Wonderful carving perfectly capturing the tranquil mood of the scene, beautiful thoughtful face of the boy, excellent detailing - see the woven mat spread on the back of the beast, its tether with rope and dense hairwork. Eyes of the buffalo...

19th century boxwood netsuke of a baby boy crawling on his hands and knees, wearing a bib tied on his back. Excellent rendition of body and limbs showing baby fat, great face, hair knots are inlaid with dark horn. Very beautiful warm brown staining, pleasant patina, overall in excellent condition. Length 1 13/16 inches.

19th century netsuke of a reclining deer with its head turned back, hooves bent beneath its body. Elegant carving with pure clean lines, excellent hairwork, wonderful depiction of volume of the deer body, excellent head with finely carved antlers, eyes are inlaid with dark horn, beautiful patina. Old replacement to its right ear. Signed RANICHI in oval reserve on the bottom - this excellent carver is discussed in detail on p. 860 of NETSUKE & INRO ARTISTS AND HOW TO READ THEIR SIGNATURES by Geo...

Netsuke of standing Jurojin (one of the 7 Gods of happiness, usually associated with longevity) holding a scepter with reishi fungus head, wearing a cape, a long robe and a spotted deer (the animal is a symbol of longevity) skirt. There is a nice detail for a netsuke lover - he is wearing an inro suspended by a manju netsuke. Excellent carving - see the detailing of his portrait quality face, incised fingernails, texture and spots of the deer skirt. Superb quality staining, beautiful patina. Sig...

19th century marine netsuke of Shoki the Demon Queller with a drawn sword, and two oni by his feet - one cowering under a woven straw hat, and the other terrified one thrown on its back. Excellent carving of Shoki’s ferocious face with a touch of madness, his spastically clenched hand and dynamic lines of his robe, Expert dark staining, very beautiful wear and patina. Height 1.6 inches.

19th century netsuke depicting a group of three turtles - one large, and two smaller ones climbing on its back. Superb quality work, stained dark brown with natural color showing on the carapace of one of them, beautiful patina. Serious classic netsuke in excellent condition. Length 1.34 inches.

Very unusual late 18th to early 19th century Japanese sword bronze tsuba with cloisonne decoration of a dragon and a tiger about to engage in a fight, the back with design of bamboo and flowering prunus. Wonderful pairing of the two most powerful animals, beautiful crisp work, in excellent condition. Comes in kiriwood box. Height 2.79 inches, width 2.77 inches.

Original woodblock print BLUE THICKET by Joichi Hoshi (1913-1979) printed in 1974, framed and glazed. Excellent crisp print in perfect condition, silver metallic highlights, listed as plate 318 in JOICHI HOSHI CATALOGUE OF ALL TREE WOODBLOCK PRINTS published by Kato Gallery in 1988. Red “tree” seal of the artist in lower right corner, titled, signed and dated by the artist in pencil (see details). Image size 6 1/4 x 8 7/8 inches, frame size 13 3/4 x 16 1/2 inches. Superb image, all that Hosh...

19th century netsuke of Edo omiyage (gifts from Tokyo) including a straw bundle with clam shells, a pouch inscribed Kaminari Okoshi and containing sweetened puffed rice cookies from Asakusa, a necklace of so-called donguri (acorn) sweets, a toy whistle, a small shallow box, the back of the netsuke with a round box inscribed Omori Karashizuke Yamamoto (mustard marinated pickles from Yamamoto of Omori). Extremely well carved with minute details - see the delicate texture of a thin bamboo branch wi...