3rd Nov, 2023 11:00
Fine Netsuke & Sagemono
6
A FINE SILVER-INLAID FOUR-CASE LACQUER INRO DEPICTING A TIGER AND DRAGON
Sold for €1,950
including Buyer's Premium
Unsigned
Japan, late 17th century, Edo period (1605-1868)
Of rectangular form and oval section, bearing a fine roiro ground and decorated in takamaki-e and hiramaki-e with small gold and red lacquer kirigane flakes. One side decorated with a powerful dragon, inlaid in silver, surrounded by swirling clouds and gold whisps of wind. The reverse with a tiger, inlaid in shakudo, on a riverbank with rolling waves and bamboo shoots sprouting from the shore. Both frames set within a recessed floral panel. The base and top decorated with light nashiji clouding and the interior cases of dense nashjiji with fundame rims.
HEIGHT 6.7 cm, LENGTH 5.8 cm
Condition: Very good condition with minor wear, light rubbing, and typical losses to the kirigane flakes.
Provenance: Sotheby's, 8 June 1950, London. Private collection, acquired from the above, assembled by the previous owner’s great-grandfather and thence by descent. The interior with an old label reading, ‘Silver dragon in clouds: on reverse tiger and bamboo. Old 17th century piece. S 8/6/50 W/BX/-.‘
The dragon and tiger are symbols of the two opposing and yet complimentary forces of yin and yang. The dragon, a mythical animal thought to reign over the heavens, stands for yang. The tiger, respected in ancient China as the mightiest of the wild beasts, stands for yin. They are often paired together in painting compositions but appear substantially less often in suzuribakos. Furthermore, the female tiger here is represented with spotted fur resembling a leopard. As the leopard is not native to Japan, artists had only seen leopard fur on occasion and had deduced it must belong to a female tiger.
The tiger in bamboo motif is called take ni tora in Japanese and there are many different interpretations of this combination. The tiger has a strong nature, is flexible and resilient like bamboo, but it is also said to look for shelter underneath the bamboo since strength is inferior to the forces of nature. Moreover, the tiger and bamboo represent the power of faith in Buddhism.
Museum comparison:
Compare a closely related inro bearing a similar design of tiger and dragon in the Metropolitan Museum of Art (The MET), New York, accession no. 12.134.19
Unsigned
Japan, late 17th century, Edo period (1605-1868)
Of rectangular form and oval section, bearing a fine roiro ground and decorated in takamaki-e and hiramaki-e with small gold and red lacquer kirigane flakes. One side decorated with a powerful dragon, inlaid in silver, surrounded by swirling clouds and gold whisps of wind. The reverse with a tiger, inlaid in shakudo, on a riverbank with rolling waves and bamboo shoots sprouting from the shore. Both frames set within a recessed floral panel. The base and top decorated with light nashiji clouding and the interior cases of dense nashjiji with fundame rims.
HEIGHT 6.7 cm, LENGTH 5.8 cm
Condition: Very good condition with minor wear, light rubbing, and typical losses to the kirigane flakes.
Provenance: Sotheby's, 8 June 1950, London. Private collection, acquired from the above, assembled by the previous owner’s great-grandfather and thence by descent. The interior with an old label reading, ‘Silver dragon in clouds: on reverse tiger and bamboo. Old 17th century piece. S 8/6/50 W/BX/-.‘
The dragon and tiger are symbols of the two opposing and yet complimentary forces of yin and yang. The dragon, a mythical animal thought to reign over the heavens, stands for yang. The tiger, respected in ancient China as the mightiest of the wild beasts, stands for yin. They are often paired together in painting compositions but appear substantially less often in suzuribakos. Furthermore, the female tiger here is represented with spotted fur resembling a leopard. As the leopard is not native to Japan, artists had only seen leopard fur on occasion and had deduced it must belong to a female tiger.
The tiger in bamboo motif is called take ni tora in Japanese and there are many different interpretations of this combination. The tiger has a strong nature, is flexible and resilient like bamboo, but it is also said to look for shelter underneath the bamboo since strength is inferior to the forces of nature. Moreover, the tiger and bamboo represent the power of faith in Buddhism.
Museum comparison:
Compare a closely related inro bearing a similar design of tiger and dragon in the Metropolitan Museum of Art (The MET), New York, accession no. 12.134.19
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