HARUMITSU: A SUPERB WOOD NETSUKE OF A RECUMBENT OX

拍品描述

HARUMITSU: A SUPERB WOOD NETSUKE OF A RECUMBENT OX By Harumitsu (Shunko), signed Harumitsu 春光 Japan, second half of the 19th century A fine wood netsuke of a recumbent ox (ushi) with its limbs folded closely beneath the body for compactness. The hairwork is very finely incised and smoothly polished. The eyes are beautifully double-inlaid in pale and dark horn. The rope halter, attached to the ox’s muzzle, is particularly well carved and extends beneath its gracefully curved horns. Asymmetrical himotoshi to the underside and signed within a polished oval reserve HARUMITSU. LENGTH 5.1 cm Relatively little is known about the artist Harumitsu (Shunko), though he is suspected to have been a pupil of the Masanao lineage of Yamada. At the same time, certain aspects of his carvings share characteristics with the Tanba and Tsu schools. Auction comparison: This superbly crafted ox shows more similarities to Tanba-school oxen than to those from the Masanao lineage, strengthening the hypothesis that Harumitsu may at some point have been influenced by the Tanba masters such as Toyomasa and Toyoyo. For a closely related model by Toyoyo, note the very similar treatment of the underside and the manner of the rope halter, see Bonhams, Fine Japanese Art, 6 November 2012, London, lot 146 (sold for GBP 21,250 or approx. EUR 36,000 adjusted for inflation at the time of writing).

图片